McLEAN 


A    ROMANCE    OF    THE    WAR 


JOHN  BEATTY 


COLUMBUS,  OHIO  : 

PRESS    OF     FRED     J.   HEER 

1904 


S.taci? 


apemorp  of 


COLONEL  EDWARD  M.  DRISCOLL,  WHOSE 
ACCOUNT  OF  HIS  CAPTURE,  IMPRISON 
MENT  AND  ESCAPE  WHILE  A  CAPTAIN  OF 
THE  THIRD  OHIO  VOLUNTEER  INFANTRY 
SUGGESTED  THIS  STORY. 


H  FREIGHT  train  laden  in  part  with 
federal  prisoners,  pulled  out  of  Sal 
isbury  at  two  o'clock  on  the  morn 
ing  of  October  — ,  1864.  Its  destination 
was  Richmond.  A  cold,  drizzling  rain  had 
set  in  during  the  afternoon  of  the  preced 
ing  day,  and  still  continued.  For  two  or 
three  hours  after  starting  the  darkness  was 
intense,  but  now  for  the  first  time  since 
the  journey  began  the  open  fields  and  cul 
tivated  farms  could,  by  careful  observation, 
be  distinguished  from  the  darker  lines  of 
the  forest. 

While  crossing  a  level,  sandy  tract  two 
of  the  prisoners  sprang  forward,  threw 
up  the  crossed  bayonets  of  the  guards,  and 
leaped  from  the  train.  They  had  scarcely 
struck  the  ground  when  the  sharp  reports 
of  two  muskets  were  heard,  succeded  by 
shots  from  a  dozen  others. 

The  train  was  stopped  and  soldiers, 
lighted  on  their  way  by  lamps,  returned 
to  the  place  where  the  disturbed  surface 


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of  the  sand  indicated  that  the  fugitives 
had  fallen,  then  staggered  to  their  feet, 
and  finally  found  refuge  in  the  dense 
shadow  of  the  adjacent  woods.  After  a 
delay  of  perhaps  ten  minutes,  the  search 
was  abandoned,  and  the  train  moved  for 
ward. 

The  men  who  had  acquired  freedom  by 
this  perilous  leap,  felt  their  way  slowly  into 
the  forest,  and  when  it  became  fairly  light, 
pushed  westward  at  rapid  pace.  Soon  after 
sunrise  they  entered  a  fertile  region  where 
houses  and  cultivated  fields  were  not  in 
frequent. 

They  were  young  men,  and  it  had  been 
some  time  —  some  months  in  fact  —  since 
they  had  partaken  of  a  substantial  meal. 
The  violent  exercise  of  the  morning  had, 
therefore,  awakened  in  them  a  vigorous 
desire  for  food.  Approaching  the  line  of 
settlements,  but  still  pursuing  their  way  in 
the  forest,  they  soon  came  near  a  field  of 
corn,  and  before  they  had  passed  by  it, 
discovered  a  negro  stripping  husk  from 
the  ears. 

The  shorter,  but  evidently  not  the  younger 
of  the  fugitives,  whispered  his  companion 

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to  stand,  while  he  should  reconnoiter  the 
premises,  and  if  prudent  to  do  so,  speak 
to  the  workman.  When  the  latter  was  told 
that  two  escaped  union  soldiers  desired  food, 
a  gleam  of  good  feeling  lighted  up  his 
dark  face,  and  picking  up  the  basket  con 
taining  the  lunch  brought  with  him  to  the 
field,  he  asked : 

"Whar  de  udder  one?" 

"Just  beyond  the  fence  in  the  woods." 

Accompanying  the  white  man  to  the  place 
indicated,  the  negro  surrendered  his  sweet 
potatoes  and  bacon  to  them  with  great  cheer 
fulness,  but  the  taller  of  the  fugitives,  as 
if  troubled  over  the  matter  in  some  way, 
before  partaking  of  the  food,  asked: 

"Shall  we  not  be  robbing  you  of  your 
dinner,  my  good  fellow?" 

"No,  sah ;"  replied  the  slave,  "I  pray  de 
Lo'd  dat  no  harm  kotch  yer;  dat  ez  dinner 
nuff  for  me,  sah." 

"You  can  get  more?" 

"Yasser,  yasser,  dis  nigger  aint  gwinter 
starve  fo'  night;  'possum  en  hoe  cake 
plenty,  sah." 

It  was  not  a  full  meal  for  two  healthy 
and  hungry  young  men,  but  compared 


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with  some  repasts  they  had  recently  been 
obliged  to  be  content  with,  it  was  most 
luxurious  and  they  rose  from  it  strengthened 
and  thankful. 

"How  far  is  it  to  the  Blue  Ridge?" 
asked  the  shorter  man,  turning  to  the  negro. 

"Ter  de  mountings,  sah?  Dunno  sah ; 
long  stretch ;  nebber  been  dar,  sah ;  dat 
dar  road  yander  side  de  co'n  fiel'  goes  ober 
de  Yadkin  ribber,  sah,  en  on  ter  Wilkes- 
boro,  en  de  mounting  ez  furder  on.  Fokes 
goes  ter  Ten'essy  dat  dar  way,  sah,  en  hab 
ter  clomb  de  mountings  fer  ter  git  dar,  sah." 

Bidding  the  negro  good  bye,  and  thank 
ing  him  for  his  kindness,  the  fugitives  now 
started  westward,  keeping  still  in  the  wood 
lands,  but  within  sight  of  the  open  fields. 

About  noon  the  sky  became  clear,  and 
they  caught  glimpses  of  the  sun  through 
openings  in  the  foliage.  In  many  places 
underbrush,  fallen  timber,  and  spreading 
vines  rendered  their  progress  slow  and  la 
borious;  but  as  if  to  compensate  them 
somewhat  for  the  trouble  occasioned  by 
these  obstacles,  clusters  of  wild  grapes  were 
found,  here  and  there,  which  to  their  vig 
orous  appetites  were  very  acceptable. 
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cMcLean 

Reaching  an  open  space  where  the  sun 
light  fell  pleasantly  on  a  patch  of  green 
sward,  they  stopped  to  rest.  For  one  of 
these  fugitives,  at  least,  the  freedom  of  the 
woods,  pure  air  and  sunshine  were  luxuries 
of  which  he  had,  of  late,  known  little.  Dur 
ing  a  year  of  prison  life  he  had  spent  four 
months  in  a  dungeon.  The  confederate 
authorities  had  been  holding  him  under  a 
retaliatory  threat,  and  the  rebel  officer  with 
whom  his  destiny  was  thus  linked,  having 
been  executed  as  a  spy,  he  was  to  be  hung 
or  shot  at  four  o'clock  to-morrow,  and 
was  being  conveyed  to  Richmond  for  that 
purpose  when  he  jumped  from  the  train. 

The  two  men  had  not  closed  their  eyes 
during  the  preceding  night,  and  had  been 
too  long  accustomed  to  dangers  of  one  sort 
and  another  to  allow  those  by  which  they 
might  now  be  surrounded  to  interfere  with 
their  strong  desire  for  sleep.  They  there 
fore,  soon  became  oblivious  to  the  trials  of 
the  past,  the  perils  of  the  present,  and  the 
uncertainties  of  the  future. 

When  the  fugitives  awoke,  the  level 
beams  of  the  setting  sun  were  glinting 
through  the  forest.  They  had  spent  more 


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time  sleeping  than  they  intended,  and  the 
shorter  man  springing  to  his  feet,  said  im 
patiently  : 

"We  should  have  been  ten  miles  farther 
on  our  way,  Captain  Northrup.  We  have 
slept  too  long." 

"We  shall  feel  all  the  better  for  it,"  re 
sponded  Northrup,  "and  can  now  push  on 
till  morning." 

It  soon  grew  quite  dark  in  the  woods, 
and  the  fugitives  diverged  to  the  left  with 
a  view  to  taking  the  open  fields  which 
skirted  the  public  highway,  when  it  should 
become  safe  to  do  so.  The  moon  was  now 
up,  but  as  yet  its  beams  were  obstructed  by 
the  forest;  an  hour  later,  however,  when 
the  two  men  had  abandoned  the  woods  and 
were  pushing  rapidly  on  through  the  open 
fields,  the  soft  light  which  fell  around  them, 
and  the  thought  that  every  step  took  them 
nearer  to  home  and  friends,  filled  their 
hearts  with  pleasure,  and  frames  with 
strength. 

At  eight  o'clock  as  nearly  as  the  time 

could  be  conjectured,  they  ventured  to  take 

the  road  which,  although  far  from  smooth, 

was  preferable  to  the  weeds,  grass  and  un- 

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even  surface  of  the  fields.  In  one  or  two 
instances  while  passing  farm  houses  they 
were  annoyed  by  the  noisy  vigilance  of 
dogs;  but  their  progress  was  not  inter 
rupted,  and  being  armed  with  heavy  clubs, 
they  felt  reasonably  confident  in  their  ability 
to  defend  themselves  successfully  against 
either  beast  or  man  in  any  contest  at  all 
likely  to  occur  during  the  night,  in  a  farm 
ing  country,  many  miles  from  military  posts. 

About  eleven  o'clock  they  climbed  a  rail 
fence,  and  went  to  an  isolated  hut  which 
stood  some  little  distance  from  the  road. 
The  knock  which  the  shorter  man  made  on 
the  door  failed  for  some  time  to  elicit  any 
response,  but  being  repeated  frequently,  a 
woman's  voice  finally  cried  out, 

"Who  makin'  all  dat  racket  on  de  do'  ?" 

"A  friend." 

"Who  ez  de  frien'  ?" 

"Come  to  the  door  so  that  I  can  talk 
with  you." 

"Gor  way;  don'  trouble  niggas  dis  time 
o'  night. 

"But  I  must  see  you;  I've  lost  my  way 
and  want  you  to  put  me  right." 

"Whar  gwine?" 


cMcLean 

"Yadkin  river." 

"Foller  de  plain  road  ter  de  wes'." 

"But  I  am  turned  round;  open  the  door 
and  direct  me." 

A  heavy  wooden  bar  was  now  partly 
withdrawn,  and  the  door  opened  far  enough 
to  disclose  the  face  of  the  colored  woman 
with  whom  the  conversation  had  been  car 
ried  on.  Relying  upon  the  good  feeling 
which  her  race  almost  invariably  manifested 
toward  the  soldiers  of  the  union  army,  the 
man  now  informed  her  quietly  that  he  was 
a  federal  officer,  endeavoring  to  make  his 
way  north,  and  prompted  by  hunger  rather 
than  by  a  desire  to  obtain  information,  he 
had  taken  the  liberty  to  disturb  her  at  this 
unseasonable  hour. 

His  accent  indicated  to  the  acute  ear  of 
the  woman  that  he  was  not  of  southern 
birth,  while  his  person,  which  the  moon 
afforded  sufficient  light  to  reveal,  corro 
borated  her  conjecture  and  his  statement. 
The  door  was  thrown  open,  and  he  invited 
to  enter. 

A  middle-aged  negro  man  who  thus  far 
had  said  nothing,  now  appeared,  and  to  him 
the  officer  narrated  as  quickly  as  possible 

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cMcLean 

the  manner  of  his  escape,  the  incidents  of 
the  day,  and  the  fact  that  his  companion 
was  on  the  outside  awaiting  the  result  of 
this  adventure.  Northrup  was  at  once 
called  in;  the  coals  on  the  hearth  raked 
together,  and  a  few  pine  knots  placed  on 
them.  The  blaze  which  soon  lighted  up  the 
cabin,  revealed  a  rough  table,  two  benches, 
and  a  bed  in  which  children  were  sleeping. 

When  the  meal  was  prepared  and  placed 
on  the  table,  the  officers  attacked  the  food 
like  men  whose  appetites  had  not  of  late 
been  dulled  by  over-feeding.  The  corn 
bread  was  sweet,  and  the  meat  wonderfully 
tender  and  juicy.  The  negro  and  his  wife 
saw  the  victuals  disappear  with  as  much 
genuine  satisfaction,  probably,  as  the  most 
hospitable  host  and  hostess  ever  experienced. 
Before  withdrawing  from  the  table  Captain 
Northrup,  turning  to  the  negro,  asked: 

"What's  your  name?" 

"Tom  —  Co'nel  McKorkle's  nigger,  sah." 

"Well  Tom,  I  never  ate  a  meal,  which 
afforded  me  more  real  enjoyment  than  this. 
I  think  the  roast  the  tenderest  and  most 
palatable  I  ever  tasted.  What  kind  of  meat 
is  it,  Tom?" 

13 


cMcLean 

"Hit's  'possum,  sah,"  replied  Tom  laugh 
ing;  "kotched  him  dis  ebenin',  sah." 

"Opossum,"  exclaimed  Northrup,  to 
whom  the  idea  of  eating  opossum  was  cer 
tainly  novel,  and  possibly  not  altogether 
agreeable. 

"Yasser,  yasser;  hit's  berry  good  and 
fat,  sah." 

"Well,"  continued  Northrup,  "It's  the 
first  time  I  ever  had  the  pleasure  of  dining 
on  opossum." 

"Nebber  eat  'possum  meat  'fore,"  ex 
claimed  Tom  incredulously,  while  Tom's 
wife  laughted  outright. 

"Never,"  said  Northrup. 

"Lo'd  sakes,  massa,  w'at  part  de  coun 
try  yo'  lib,  dat  yo'  nebber  eat  no  'possum 
'fore?" 

"Captain  Northrup  lives  in  Boston,"  his 
companion  answered,  "where  they  have 
none  of  the  luxuries  of  life.  It's  a  sort  of 
God-forsaken  town,  and  yet,  strange  to  tell, 
they  think  it  the  best  place  in  world.  Do 
you  know  where  Boston  is,  Tom?" 

"Bostian,"  said  Tom  quickly,  "Dat  dar 
town's  ober  on  de  udder  side  de  Yadkin 

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cMcLean 

ribber,  sah,  in  Rowen  county,  sah;  dar's 
'possums  dar,  suahly  sah." 

"Not  a  'possum  in  Boston,  Tom.  It's  a 
good  place  for  people  to  come  away  from, 
but  a  bad  place  to  live." 

"Grashus,"  exclaimed  Tom,  and  then 
sobering  up  suddenly  under  some  new 
thought,  he  asked,  "How  it  come  dat  Cap'n 
Northrup  is  a  Yankee  officer,  if  he  lib  in 
Bostian;  de  Rowen  county  folks  ez  purty 
bad  sesesh,  sah?" 

"Tom,"  said  Captain  Northrup,  who  evi 
dently  thought  his  comrade  was  making 
no  good  return  for  the  poor  negro's  hos 
pitality,  "Captain  Lindsay  has  been  indulg 
ing  in  a  little  harmless  pleasantry  at  my  ex 
pense.  My  home  is  Boston,  a  city  in  the 
state  of  Massachusetts,  many  hundreds  of 
miles  away.  I  was  captured  in  Virginia 
by  the  rebels,  and  am  now,  with  my  friend 
here,  trying  to  get  back  to  the  union  army." 

The  negro,  although  alarmed  for  an  in 
stant,  was  now  fully  satisfied.  He  perceived 
on  second  thought  that  the  men  before  him 
had  neither  the  accent  nor  manner  of 
southern  gentlemen,  and  made  haste  to 

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cMcLean 

atone  for  his  momentary  suspicion  by  say 
ing,  solemnly: 

"I  pray  de  Lo'd  dat  yo'  git  safe  en  suah 
back  ter  dat  army  agin.  We  ez  pore  igrant 
niggas  down  hyre,  sah,  but  we  know  dat 
yo'  uns  ez  a  fightin'  fer  de  black  man,  sah, 
an'  we  ez  prayin'  fer  yer  night  en  day." 

The  earnestness  of  the  negro  affected 
Northrup,  and  with  a  voice  full  of  tender 
ness,  he  said: 

"Tom,  the  time  is  not  far  distant  when 
every  colored  man  shall  be  free;  you  are 
in  fact  now  no  longer  legally  bound  to  servi 
tude.  President  Lincoln  has  by  proclama 
tion  emancipated  you.  Sherman  with  a 
great  army  is  sweeping  through  Georgia 
like  a  whirlwind.  Grant  is  to-day  thunder 
ing  against  the  fortifications  of  Richmond, 
and  the  whole  confederacy,  with  its  accursed 
institution  of  slavery,  is  toppling  to  its  fall." 

This  language  may  have  been  somewhat 
above  the  comprehension  of  the  negro,  but 
he  understood  enough  of  it  to  exclaim, 
"Hallelujah." 

"You  and  your  good  wife,"  continued 
Northrup,  "will  soon  be  permitted  to  go 

16 


cMcLean 

hence,  or  remain  here,  as  it  pleases  you. 
Your  children  will  never  know  what  it  is  to 
be  slaves.  You  will  labor  for  yourselves, 
obtain  homes  of  your  own,  and  will  have 
schools  and  churches.  The  night  is  far 
spent,  Tom ;  the  dawn  is  upon  you,  and  the 
sun  of  a  better  life  is  now  rising  for  you 
and  your  race." 

"Har  de  man,  Hannah,"  shouted  Tom; 
"de  day  ob  jubilee  hab  come,  ho!  ho!" 

"Captain  Northrup,"  said  Lindsay,  we 
should  be  going.  "How  far  is  it,  Tom,  to 
the  Yadkin  river  ?" 

"Short  stretch,  sah;  mought  be  two 
miles,  sah." 

"Shall  we  have  any  trouble  in  getting 
across  ?" 

"Ferry  boat  dar,  sah;  boy  w'at  pulls  it 
ober  may  be  'sleep  dis  time  night,  sah." 

"Is  he  black  or  white  ?" 

"O,  he  black,  sah ;  de  niggers  do  all  de 
hard  work  in  dis  country,  sah." 

Northrup  here  took  a  scrap  of  paper  from 
his  pocket,  and  with  a  pencil  wrote  very 
plainly : 

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cMcLean 

"CAPTAIN    HENRY    NORTHRUP, 

"or   MRS.    ELEANOR  NORTHRUP, 

"17   Beacon    Street,  BOSTON,  MASS. 
"Tom  McKorkle  and  Hannah,    his    wife,    fed 
me  when   hungry.     Davidson    Co.    en    route    to 
Wilkesboro,   and   near   the  Yadkin  river,  N.  C." 

Handing  this  to  Tom,  he  said,  "When 
the  war  ends  get  some  friend  who  can 
write  to  inclose  this  piece  of  paper  to  the 
address  you  find  on  it.  If  living,  I  shall 
get  it,  and  you  will  hear  from  me ;  if  dead 
my  mother  will  get  it,  and  you  will  hear 
from  her." 

As  the  officers  now  turned  to  depart  they 
were  followed  by  a  solemn,  "God  bress  yo' 
an'  be  wid  yo,'  an'  take  keer  ob  yo,' "  from 
Tom  McKorkle  and  his  wife. 

It  was  nearly  midnight  when  they  reached 
the  road  and  turned  westward.  They  hoped 
to  reach  the  Yadkin  in  less  than  an  hour, 
and  to  cross  it  before  morning;  but  in  a 
few  minutes  they  heard  the  clatter  of  horses' 
feet  on  the  road  behind  them.  Concluding 
at  once  that  a  detachment  of  cavalry  had 
been  dispatched  from  Salisbury  or  Lexing- 
tion  for  their  recapture,  they  hastily  climbed 
the  fence  and  ran  across  the  open  field  to  the 
woods. 

18 


II 

THE  RESCUE 

BEFORE  Lindsey  and  Northrup  had 
fairly  gained  the  cover  of  the 
forest,  four  mounted  men  went 
dashing  down  the  road  at  a  speed  which 
indicated  that  their  mission  demanded  the 
utmost  haste.  The  horses  were  flecked  with 
foam,  and  their  gait  was  evidently  prompted 
by  the  spur  rather  than  by  any  eagerness 
of  their  own.  When  the  party  reached  the 
river  the  leader  of  it  called  across  im 
patiently  : 

"Ferryman  !  Ho  !  yo'  nigger,  shove  the 
boat  over." 

Riding  close  to  the  margin  of  the  stream 
the  horsemen  peered  over  the  dark  waters 
to  ascertain  if  in  the  still  deeper  shadows 
of  the  great  trees  which  lined  the  other 
shore,  there  was  anything  to  denote  that  the 
command  had  been  heard  by  the  person  for 
whom  it  was  intended;  but  as  they  dis 
covered  nothing,  and  heard  no  response,  the 
leader  became  very  emphatic  in  his  denun- 

19 


ciation  of  ferrymen  in  general  and  of  this 
Yadkin  ferryman  in  particular. 

"Ferry-boat-ho,  confound  yo'  are  yo' 
deaf?"*  Still  all  was  silent  beyond  the 
stream. 

"Captain  Locke,"  said  the  youngest  of 
the  party,  addressing  the  leader,  "Joe's 
cabin  is  on  the  right  of  the  road,  under 
the  shadow  of  a  large  oak.  Possibly  if  I 
were  to  fire  my  carbine  it  would  arouse 
him." 

"All  right,  Brevar;  fire!" 

The  report  of  the  gun  had  scarcely  died 
away  when  a  voice  shouted  back: 

"Who  shoot  dat  dar  gun?" 

"We  did,  you  lazy  scoundrel,"  answered 
Captain  Locke,  "and  if  yo'  don't  shove  the 
boat  over  double-quick  we'll  put  a  volley 
into  yo'." 

"Don't  done  dat,  massa,  for  de  Lo'd  sake ; 
dis  nigger  '11  fetch  de  boat." 

"What  time  o'  night  is  it,  Brevar?"  asked 
Captain  Locke. 

The  young  man  took  out  his  watch,  and 
striking  a  match,  replied:  "One  o'clock, 
tar." 

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cMcLean 

"How  far  beyond  the  river  is  the  house 
where  we  are  expected  to  find  McLean?" 

"Three  miles,  sir." 

"Is  yo'r  home  in  Davie  County,  Brevar?" 

"O  no,  sir;  my  father  resides  in  Iredell, 
but  I  know  much  of  Davie.  I  have  hunted 
all  over  it,  and  have  many  relatives  there. 
In  fact,  the  lady  at  whose  house  McLean  is 
reported  to  be  stopping  is  the  widow  of 
my  uncle. 

"Why  I  thought  her  McLean's  sister," 
exclaimed  the  captain. 

"So  she  is,  sir ;  but  she  is  also  the  widow 
of  Alexandar  Brevar,  my  father's  deceased 
brother." 

"Do  yo'  know  McLean?" 

"Very  well.  The  grandfather  of  Davy 
McLean  came  to  North  Carolina  more  than 
a  century  ago  from  Scotland.  His  family  is 
an  old  one,  sir.  They  trace  their  lineage 
back  many  centuries,  and  have  the  tradi 
tional  achievements  of  the  clan  to  which 
their  ancestors  belonged  at  their  tongue's 
end.  Davy  is  a  thorough  Scotchman,  and 
I  think  takes  great  delight  in  the  border 
warfare  with  which  for  the  past  three  years 
he  has  been  identified." 

21 


cMcLean 

"But  why  does  he  venture  into  Davie?" 
"McLean  would  venture  anywhere,  sir; 
and  besides  he  had  a  large  plantation  in 
Davie,  on  which  he  resided  until  our  men 
burned  his  houses  and  barns  in  1861.  He 
has  also  many  friends  there ;  in  fact,  I  think 
between  the  river  here  and  the  Blue  Ridge, 
his  friends  outnumber  his  foes." 

"Are  these  friends  personal  or  political?" 
"Both,  sir.  What  is  called  the  union 
sentiment  is  as  strong  in  the  extreme 
western  part  of  North  Carolina  as  it  is  in 
the  eastern  part  of  Tennessee;  but  Davy 
McLean  has  many  personal  friends  among 
those  even  whose  devotion  to  the  confed 
eracy  is  unquestioned.  He  and  my  father, 
for  instance,  were  boys  together,  as  were 
their  fathers  before  them ;  nothing  on  earth 
could  diminish  the  respect  and  friendship 
which  they  entertain  for  each  other.  Mc 
Lean  was  outspoken  and  bitter  in  his  hos 
tility  to  secession,  but  he  did  not  lift  a  hand 
in  favor  of  the  north  until  some  time  after 
the  battle  of  Bull  Run.  My  father  says  the 
secessionists  of  west  North  Carolina  com 
mitted  many  excesses  then,  which  they  have 
paid  for  very  dearly  since,  and  the  destruc- 
22 


cMcLean 

tion  of  Davy  McLean's  property  has  cost 
Iredell,  Wilkes  and  Watauga  many  times 
its  value." 

"It  is  certain,"  replied  Captain  Locke, 
"that  he  and  his  friends,  if  all  reports  are 
true,  have  been  raising  the  devil  on  the  bor 
der  between  No'th  Ca'liny  and  Ten'essy  fo' 
years." 

The  boat  had  now  reached  the  shore  and 
the  horsemen  riding  on  to  it,  soon  disem 
barked  on  the  other  side.  As  the  squad 
went  clattering  over  the  hill,  the  ferryman 
muttered  to  himself : 

"Bar's  some  devilment  gwine  on  suah. 
Dem  sesesh  ez  not  ridin'  dis  time  o'  night  fer 
fun.  I  hope  dey  breaks  dar  necks,  dat's 
all  de  harm  dis  nigga  wishes  dem." 

Lindsay  and  Northrup,  after  hiding  in 
the  woods  for  an  hour,  concluded  finally  to 
feel  their  way  cautiously  to  the  river,  and 
determine  whether  it  would  be  advisable 
to  attempt  to  reach  the  opposite  shore  be 
fore  daylight.  They  did  not  venture  to 
take  the  road  again,  but  kept  as  near  to  it 
as  possible.  It  was  very  dark  under  the 
trees  and  their  progress  was  slow  and  diffi 
cult.  More  than  once  they  became  utterly 

23 


cMcLean 

bewildered,  and  lost  much  valuable  time  in 
getting  their  true  direction. 

It  was  fully  three  o'clock  in  the  morn 
ing  when  they  reached  the  bank  of  the 
river.  Turning  squarely  to  the  left  now, 
they  proceeded  cautiously  toward  the  road 
they  had  abandoned,  and  finally  discov 
ered  a  light  before  them.  Feeling  their 
way  stealthily  they  soon  came  with  a  sud 
denness  which  almost  took  their  breath,  to 
within  a  few  feet  of  five  men. 

The  soldiers  of  Captain  Locke's  detach 
ment,  having  unsaddled  their  horses  for 
rest  and  food,  had  kindled  a  fire,  and  were 
now  partaking  of  a  lunch.  Their  guns 
lay  in  a  heap  near  the  saddles,  and  some 
little  distance  away  sat  a  prisoner  with  his 
hands  tied  behind  his  back. 

Addressing  the  party  before  him  the  pris 
oner  said. 

"It  was  hardly  fair,  gentlemen,  to  pounce 
down  on  a  man  at  dead  of  night  and  assault 
him,  when  in  his  bed,  unarmed." 

"We  are  compelled  to  take  some  men 
whenever  and  wherever  we  can  find  them," 
replied  Captain  Locke,  sternly.  "Spies, 
bush-whackers  and  traitors  to  their  state, 

24 


cMcLean 

sah,  are  entitled  to  no  consideration,  and 
deserve  nothing  but  a  rope  or  a  bullet." 

"I  am  neither;  I  have  been  true  to  my 
country,  sir.  I  have  never  fought  other 
wise  than  in  an  honorable  and  manly  way." 

"Yo'  are  a  union  man?" 

"I  am,  and  my  fathers  were  before  me." 

"Yo'  have  been  untrue  to  yo'r  state?" 

"I  have  been  faithful  to  the  best  interests 
of  my  state." 

"Yo'  have  fought  against  the  confederate 
army  ?" 

"Because  it  was  made  up  of  the  enemies 
of  my  country,  and  warring  against  the 
flag  under  which  my  father  and  my  grand 
father  fought.  And  Frank  B'revar,"  con 
tinued  the  prisoner  turning  to  the  young 
man,  "I  regret  to  see  you  here,  my  boy. 
Your  great-grandfather  and  my  grand 
father  stood  shoulder  to  shoulder  under  the 
old  flag  at  Guilford  court  house.  You  have 
brought  disgrace  upon  an  honored  name." 

"Mr.  McLean,"  replied  the  young  man 
writh  dignity,  "it  would  do  no  good  to  dis 
cuss  the  questions  about  which  we  differ. 
I  am  a  soldier ;  it  is  not  the  part  of  a  sol 
dier  to  say  whither  he  will  go,  and  where 

25 


<McLean 

he  will  not.  It  is  his  duty  to  obey.  I  am 
here  in  obedience  to  orders,  and  have  done 
simply  what  my  oath  required  me  to  do. 
I  have  said  no  word  of  unkindness  to  you, 
sir,  and  shall  have  none  to  say." 

"Where  do  you  propose  to  take  me?" 

"To  Salisbury,  sah,"  responded  Captain 
Locke. 

"You  will  not  keep  me  long.  Sherman's 
army  will  be  there  before  many  days." 

"It  must  be  there  very  soon  to  render  you 
any  service." 

"Do  you  mean  to  murder  me,  sir?" 

"We  mean  to  try  yo'  befo'  a  drumhead 
court  martial,  convict  yo'  by  unimpeachable 
testimony  of  being  a  spy,  hang  yo'  and 
send  yo'  to  h — 1  double  quick.  That's  what 
we  propose  to  do  with  yo',  sah." 

"The  men  who  sit  as  judges  on  such  a 
court,"  retorted  McLean  hotly,  "will  be 
traitors ;  the  men  who  bear  testimony  there 
will  be  perjured  villians.  The  man  who 
executes  the  sentence  of  the  court  will  be 
the  vilest  miscreant  outside  of  hell ;  and 
the  man  who  talks  thus  to  one  who  is  un 
armed  and  defenceless  is  a  brutal,  cow 
ardly  assassin." 

26 


cMcLean 

"Retract  that,"  thundered  Captain  Locke, 
springing  to  his  feet,  "or  I'll  cut  yo'r  inso 
lent  lying  tongue  out  of  yo'r  head,  yo'  foul 
mouthed,  impudent  thief  and  traitor." 

"Release  me  and  try  it,"  shouted  Mc 
Lean  ;  "release  me  and  try  it  you  cowardly 
bully." 

Captain  Locke,  unable  to  restrain  him 
self,  was  advancing,  involuntarily,  perhaps, 
but  nevertheless  threateningly,  toward  the 
prisoner,  when  young  Brevar  caught  him 
by  the  arm  and  begged  him  for  God's  sake 
not  to  mind  what  McLean  said,  but  to  let 
the  conversation  cease. 

While  the  attention  of  the  confederates 
was  thus  centered  on  the  parties  to  this 
wordy  controversy,  Lindsay  and  Northrup, 
armed  with  heavy  clubs  sprang  forward, 
and  by  rapid  and  well  directed  blows,  felled 
Locke,  Brevar  and  one  soldier  to  the  earth. 
Seizing  each  a  carbine,  and  bringing  it  to  a 
ready,  they  commanded  the  remaining  sol 
dier  to  cut  the  bonds  of  the  prisoner ;  in  an 
instant  McLean  stood  armed  beside  them. 
The  affair  was  over  in  a  minute,  and  yet 
the  victory  could  not  have  been  more  com 
plete. 

27 


cMcLean 

"McLean,"  said  Lindsay,  "bind  the  pris 
oners." 

McLean  dropped  the  carbine  which  he 
had  hastily  picked  up,  and  obeyed  the  or 
der  promptly  as  to  three  of  them,  but  when 
he  came  to  Captain  Locke  he  straightened 
himself  and  said: 

"A  few  minutes  ago  you  were  about  to 
chastise  me  for  what  you  were  pleased  to 
term  my  insolence.  I  asked  you  to  release 
me  and  try  it.  Now,  sir,  we  are  on  equal 
footing ;  both  unarmed,  and  you  are  free  to 
execute  your  threat  if  you  have  the  courage 
to  do  so." 

But  the  captain,  probably  not  deficient  at 
all  in  physical  courage,  was  certainly  too 
much  bewildered  by  the  sudden  change 
which  had  taken  place  to  comprehend  the 
proposition  made  to  him,  and  as  if  deaf  to 
what  had  been  said,  stupidly  held  out  his 
hands  to  be  tied. 

"Bind  him,"  shouted  Lindsay,  impa 
tiently,  and  McLean  obeyed  the  order  with 
out  further  delay. 


28 


Ill 

ALICE  BREVAR 

CHE  horses  were  soon  resaddled,  Lind 
say,  Northrup  and  McLean  each 
taking  one;  young  Brevar  was 
mounted  on  the  other,  and  with  the  rest  of 
the  prisoners  on  foot  they  proceeded  at  once 
to  the  river.  The  ferryman  had  returned  to 
his  cabin,  but  when  the  call  was  made  he 
heard  it,  and  coming  reluctantly  and  sleepily 
to  his  boat,  yelled : 

"Yo'  uns  comin'  across  agin  ter  night?" 

"Yes;  hurry  up  the  boat,"  shouted  Mc 
Lean. 

As  the  stupid  fellow  shoved  away  from 
the  further  shore  he  muttered :  "Dem  se- 
sesh  must  be  crazy.  Dey  ez  a  gwine  ter 
make  me  tote  'em  for'ard  en  back  all  night." 

After  crossing  the  river  the  party  moved 
westward  as  rapidly  as  it  was  possible  for 
the  prisoners  to  travel,  and  had  proceeded 
six  miles  or  more  in  silence  when,  address 
ing  Lindsay  and  Northrup,  McLean  said : 

"We  left  Davidson  county  behind  us 
when  we  crossed  the  Yadkin,  and  are  now 

29 


cMcLean 

in  Davie,  not  far  from  Mocksville.  We 
must  avoid  the  town,  for  while  I  have  many 
friends  there,  I  have  also  many  enemies 
who  would  ride  whip  and  spur  to  Lexing 
ton  to  put  a  squadron  of  cavalry  on  our 
track." 

They  now  abandoned  the  public  high 
way  for  a  by-road  leading  in  a  southerly 
direction  through  the  forest ;  and  after  fol 
lowing  it  for  some  distance,  McLean,  turn 
ing  to  young  Brevar,  said : 

"Frank,  if  you  will  promise  to  make  no 
effort  to  escape,  we  will  untie  your  hands 
and  thus  render  you  more  comfortable." 

"Thank  you,"  replied  Brevar,  "I  shall 
make  no  promise,  and  will  escape  if  pos 
sible.  I  can  neither  ask  nor  accept  any 
favors  for  myself,  which  you  do  not  accord 
to  my  comrades." 

"Very  well,"  returned  McLean;  "We 
shall  press  none  on  you,  and  if  you  under 
take  to  escape  it  will  be  at  the  peril  of  your 
life." 

"But,  Mr.  McLean,"  continued  Brevar, 
"while  I  ask  no  exemption  from  the  lot  of 
my  comrades,  will  you  permit  me  to  re- 

30 


cMcLean 

lieve  Captain  Locke  by  turning  this  horse 
over  to  him?" 

"I  have  no  respect,  sir,"  replied  McLean 
hotly,  "for  the  man  whom  you  call  Captain 
Locke;  but  if  you  prefer  to  walk  I  shall 
not  object  to  his  riding." 

The  sun  had  been  up  an  hour  or  more 
when,  coming  to  an  enclosed  field,  McLean 
dismounted,  and  laying  down  a  panel  of 
rail  fence,  led  his  followers  through  the 
gap  to  a  barn  which  he  had  purposely  ap 
proached  from  the  rear  to  avoid  observa 
tion.  Leaving  his  companions  and  the  pris 
oners  here,  McLean  proceeded  to  the  house 
which  was  not  far  distant,  and  soon  after 
wards  returned  with  a  sedate  gentleman  of 
middle  age  whom  he  introduced  to  the  of 
ficers  as  Joseph  Fielding. 

"This  is  thy  party,  friend  David?"  said 
Fielding;  and  then  observing  that  four 
of  the  men  were  in  part  bound,  he  ex 
claimed  :  "Why,  friend !  why  has  thee  tied 
the  hands  of  these  men?"  Now  recog 
nizing  young  Brevar,  he  continued  :  "Surely 
is  not  this  Hugh  Brevar's  son  Francis?" 

"Yes,  that  is  Frank,  the  son  of  my  old 
neighbor  and  friend;  but  Joseph,  the  sons 

31 


cMcLean 

of  even  the  best  men  often  have  wild  oats 
to  sow,  and  Frank  has  just  now  a  surplus. 
We  are  simply  keeping  him  out  of  mis 
chief." 

"But  I  tell  thee,  friend  David,  I  will  have 
no  part  nor  lot  in  this  matter;  unbind 
these  men  and  let  them  stay  or  go  at  their 
pleasure,  or  neither  thy  men  nor  thy  horses 
shall  have  entertainmeent  at  my  hands." 

"Friend  Joseph,"  replied  McLean  coolly, 
as  he  led  his  horse  into  the  stable,  "it  is 
your  duty  and  one  of  the  requirements  of 
yoi-r  religion  to  feed  the  hungry." 

"Yea,  and  it  is  also  my  duty  to  unloose 
bonds,  and  let  the  captive  go  free." 

"I  shall  in  good  time  discharge  that  duty 
for  you ;  but  now  what  we  want  is  food. 
Gentlemen,  lead  your  horses  into  the  stable 
while  I  provide  them  with  something  to  eat. 
Joseph  has  plenty,  and  is  one  of  the  most 
hospitable  men  in  Davie  county." 

"Friend  Davy  McLean,  I  protest  against 
thy  action;  if  thee  will  unbind  these  men 
my  house  and  barn  are  open  to  thee  and 
thine,  but  if  thee  comes  here  in  a  warlike 
spirit,  and  with  blood  on  thy  hands,  thee 

32 


cMclean 

must  go  hence.  I  will  have  no  fellowship 
with  thee." 

"Friend  Joseph,"  said  McLean,  as  he 
proceeded  to  supply  the  horses  with  for 
age,  "you  are  the  most  unreasonably  obsti 
nate  Quaker  in  North  Carolina.  Without 
knou  ing  anything  about  the  matter  you 
conclude  that  1  am  in  the  wrcng,  and  at 
once  allow  your  carnal  spirit  to  get  tiie 
better  of  your  judgment,  and  condemn 
without  giving  me  an  opportunity  for  ex 
planation." 

"U  no,  1  will  not  be  hasty  with  thee,  but 
I  will  not  aid  thee  in  thy  warlike  enter 
prises.  1  respect  thee  as  a  man  of  good 
family,  who  has  in  times  past  done  gener 
ous  deeds,  but  thy  reputation  of  iate  has 
been  that  of  a  turbulent,  bloody-minded 
man,  and  tins  company  leads  me  to  suspect 
thee  has  been  upun  an  errand  oi  nnscmei, 
and  is  engaged  in  ine  business  oi  war." 

"Let  us  go  to  the  house,"  replied  Aic- 
Lean,  "and  while  your  good  wife  is  pre 
paring  breakfast  for  both  bund  and  free, 
i  will  endeavor  to  satisfy  von  that  vuur 
suspicions  are  grossly  unjust." 

33 


cMcLean 

"I  go  then,"  returned  Joseph,  "only  upon 
the  condition  that  thee  will  exculpate  thy 
self,  and  satisfy  me  thee  is  not  engaged  in 
a  warlike  act." 

It  is  probable  the  language  of  this  saga 
cious  Quaker  was  prompted  more  by  a  pru 
dent  care  for  his  own  property  and  tem 
poral  well-being  than  by  his  convictions  of 
duty  and  desire  to  keep  himself  in  harmony 
with  the  tenets  of  his  religious  faith.  He 
was  living  in  a  section  where  neighbors 
were  divided  in  sentiment  on  questions  cal 
culated  to  arouse  the  bitterest  animosities, 
and  stimulate  the  most  violent  acts.  It 
would  perhaps  have  been  unsafe,  therefore, 
for  him  to  have  received  McLean  cordially 
in  the  presence  of  young  Brevar  and  his 
fellow  prisoners. 

Rachel  Fielding,  to  whom  the  party  was 
soon  introduced,  received  McLean  and  his 
friends  kindly,  and  greeted  the  prisoners 
with  an  expression  in  which  there  was  an 
evident  commingling  of  tenderness,  sym 
pathy  and  surprise.  In  her  modest  cap, 
drab  apron  and  brown  frock,  she  seemed  a 
perfect  type  of  the  neat  housewife  and  good 
mother. 

34 


cMcLean 

The  breakfast  to  which  her  guests  were 
soon  invited  was  not  only  well  served,  but 
excellently  prepared.  McLean,  Lindsay, 
and  Northrup  stood  guard  in  turn  over  the 
prisoners,  and  while  treating  them  with 
the  utmost  kindness,  afforded  no  opportu 
nity  for  their  escape. 

When  McLean  and  his  party  were  lead 
ing  their  horses  from  the  stable  and  about 
to  resume  their  journey,  Joseph  said : 

"David  McLean,  thee  has  failed  to  sat 
isfy  me  that  thee  is  engaged  in  a  justifiable 
enterprise.  Thee  has  secured  thy  enter 
tainment  by  leading  me  to  suppose  thee 
could  give  a  proper  and  sufficient  reason  for 
holding  these  citizens  in  bonds.  Thee  has 
not  dealt  openly  with  me  and  I  beg  thee 
to  make  amends  for  thy  subtle  and  evasive 
conduct  by  permitting  the  son  of  my  old 
friend  Brevar,  and  his  companions  to  go 
free." 

"Friend  Joseph,"  returned  McLean,  "if 
I  did  not  know  you  were  a  noncombatant 
I  would  not  accept  these  reproaches  from 
you  in  a  kindly  spirit.  Do  you  know,  sir, 
what  you  ask?  It  is  not  eight  hours  since 
these  men  dragged  me  at  dead  of  night 

35 


McLean 

from  my  bed,  and  attempted  to  take  me 
forcibly  before  a  tribunal  which  only 
awaited  my  appearance  to  go  in  mockery 
of  justice  through  the  forms  of  a  trial,  and 
sentence  me  to  death.  Thanks  to  these  gal 
lant  Union  officers,  I  was  rescued,  and  now 
while  I  propose  to  do  the  prisoners  no 
harm,  I  do  intend  to  keep  them  from  doing 
me  further  mischief." 

"What  thee  says  may  be  true,  but  if  true, 
friend  Davy  McLean,  it  shows  simply  that 
two  wrongs  have  been  committed;  one 
wrong  can  never  justify  another;  the  true 
philosophy  teaches  us  to  return  good  for 
evil.  If  thine  enemy  ask  thy  cloak,  give 
him  thy  coat  also;  and  if  he  smite  thee  on 
the  one  cheek,  turn  to  him  the  other.  If  thou 
lovest  simply  thy  friends,  what  thank  have 
ye,  for  even  the  heathen  do  this  much. 
Love  thine  enemies,  Davy  McLean ;  re 
frain  from  violence  and  bloodshed  and  thy 
days  shall  be  long  in  the  land.  Thee  and  thy 
friends  and  thine  enemies  also  are  welcome 
to  what  little  thou  hast  had  at  my  house, 
and  as  thee  leaves,  permit  me  to  hope  that 
the  day  of  strife  may  be  soon  past,  and  that 
peace  may  come  with  healing  on  her  wings, 

36 


cMcLean 

for  it  is  but  too  apparent  that  the  land  is 
now  in  a  great  strait." 

"Thanks  for  your  homily,  friend  Joseph," 
replied  McLean,  "and  for  your  hospitality 
also.  Good  bye." 

After  leaving  the  house  of  Joseph  Field 
ing,  McLean's  party  traveled  on  by-roads 
and  paths  through  the  forest  until  late  in 
the  afternoon,  when  they  entered  the  public 
highway. 

"We  have  now  left  Davie  behind  us," 
said  McLean,  "and  are  going  through  the 
northern  part  of  Iredell,  a  county  organized 
in  1788  and  named  in  honor  of  Judge  James 
Iredell,  senior.  It  was  originally  a  part  of 
Rowen.  The  Whites,  Osbornes,  Caldwells 
and  Brevars  have  been  prominent  families 
in  this  section  for  over  a  hundred  years. 
Old  John  Brevar  settled  within  the  present 
limits  of  Iredell  at  a  place  known  as  Center 
Church  in  1740;  he  was  an  old  man  when 
the  war  of  the  revolution  began ;  five  of 
his  sons  served  in  the  Continental  army. 
When  the  British  under  Cornwallis  invaded 
North  Carolina  they  burned  his  residence, 
out  houses  and  barns.  In  short,  they  served 

V 


cMcLean 

him  precisely  as  my  confederate  friends 
have  treated  me." 

The  latter  portion  of  McLean's  remarks 
fell  on  inattentive  ears,  for  before  he  had 
concluded  a  young  girl  on  horseback  was 
observed  galloping  toward  them,  followed 
by  a  male  and  female  servant  also  mounted. 
A  stream  of  golden  hair  fell  loosely  over 
her  shoulders,  and  a  feathery  plume  floated 
like  a  pennant  from  her  dainty  hat.  She 
sat  her  horse  with  fearless  and  graceful 
ease,  and  her  bearing,  generally,  indicated 
that  saucy  independence  and  rollicking  buoy 
ancy  characteristic  of  youth  when  endowed 
with  an  excess  of  mental  and  physical 
vitality. 

Putting  whip  to  her  horse  she  was  about 
to  pass  McLean  at  rapid  pace,  when  he 
shouted,  "Alice!" 

Reining  in  beside  him  the  girl  exclaimed : 

"Why,  uncle  Davy,  this  is  a  surprise.  I 
did  not  expect  to  meet  you." 

"Whom  did  you  expect  to  meet,  you 
torn-boy  ?" 

"Nobody,  sir,"  she  answered  saucily,  "I 
am  on  my  way  to  uncle  John  Brevar's." 

38 


cMcLean 

"There  is  Frank,"  pointing  to  young 
Brevar.  "I  am  taking  him  home;  I 
thought  you  would  be  glad  to  see  him." 

"Frank !"  she  exclaimed,  and  then  recog 
nizing  her  brother  among  the  prisoners 
marching  on  foot,  she  continued :  "Why, 
Frank,  how  is  this?" 

"Ask  Mr.  McLean,  sister,"  replied  Frank, 
doggedly.  "I  am  a  prisoner." 

"A  prisoner,  and  to  uncle  Davy  McLean? 
Surely,  uncle  Davy,  this  is  a  mistake." 

"A  mistake  of  Frank's,  Alice,  not  of 
mine,"  replied  McLean  pleasantly.  "Frank 
is  a  rebel ;  I  am  taking  him  where  he  will 
do  no  mischief." 

"I  am  a  rebel,  too,  uncle  Davy,"  retorted 
Alice.  "I  begin  to  fear  you  will  bind  me 
also." 

"Well,  really  I  ought  to  do  it,  but  I 
haven't  the  heart.  Possibly  I  might  get 
one  of  the  young  men  in  my  party  to  do  it 
for  me." 

"No,  they  could  not,"  she  replied  reso 
lutely. 

"Well,  then  I  fear  you  must  be  permit 
ted  to  go  free." 

39 


cMcLean 

"But,  uncle,  you  surely  do  not  intend 
to  keep  brother  Frank  bound  and  a  pris 
oner?" 

"I  have  already  offered  to  remove  his 
bonds  if  he  would  pledge  his  word  that  he 
would  not  attempt  to  escape,  but  he  refuses 
to  make  the  promise ;  what  more  can  I 
do?" 

"You  can  turn  him  over  to  me,  uncle." 

"And  you  would  turn  him  loose,  you 
rebel !" 

"But  what  will  you  do  with  him,  uncle 
Davy?" 

"I  shall  deliver  him  to  his  father,  Miss 
Alice,  and  if  he  chooses  to  let  him  go,  so 
be  it." 

"No  harm  will   come  to  him,  then?" 

"Not  by  my  hand." 

The  great  mountain  ranges  of  west  North 
Carolina,  still  many  miles  away,  were 
plainly  visible.  The  sun  was  just  now 
dropping  behind  them  and  its  level  beams 
were  adding  new  loveliness  to  the  foliage 
of  the  hills  by  fringing  it  with  gold  ;  on 
the  lower  grounds,  however,  the  shadows 
were  gathering,  and  in  the  valleys  deepen 
ing  to  twilight. 

40 


cMcLean 

"I  shall  return  home,"  said  Alice,  "and 
give  notice  of  your  coming.  Good-bye, 
uncle  Davy." 

After  pausing  an  instant  to  exchange  a 
word  with  her  brother,  she  gave  free  rein 
to  her  impatient  horse,  and,  as  she  galloped 
away,  contributed  for  a  moment,  new  inter 
est  and  beauty  to  the  landscape,  and  then 
disappeared  amid  the  splendors  of  an  au 
tumn  sunset. 

To  one  person,  at  least,  of  McLean's 
party,  the  coming  and  going  of  this  young 
girl  had  suggested  a  delightful  dream  of 
peace  and  love  and  marriage ;  very  inter 
esting  indeed,  but  like  most  dreams  of 
youth,  not  at  all  likely  to  be  fulfilled. 


IV 
THE  GAP  INN 

IN  less  than  an  hour  after  McLean  had 
been  seized  by  the  confederates,  widow 
Brevar,  conjecturing  that  the  saddest 
of  fates  awaited  her  brother,  ordered  a  faith 
ful  negro  servant  to  take  the  best  horse  on 
the  plantation  and  proceed  with  all  possible 
dispatch  to  a  camp  of  loyal  North  Carolin 
ians  on  the  Blue  Ridge,  and  acquaint  them 
with  the  circumstances  of  his  capture,  and 
the  fears  which  she  entertained  for  his 
safety. 

After  getting  beyond  Davie  county  the 
line  of  the  messenger's  journey  led  him 
through  Iredell,  and  to  the  western  limit 
of  Wilkes ;  the  distance  was  quite  sixty 
miles,  but  so  well  did  the  honest  fellow  obey 
the  injunctions  of  his  mistress  that  at  a 
little  after  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of 
the  day  on  which  he  started  he  arrived  at 
a  rickety,  unpainted  wooden  inn,  situated 
in  a  quiet  little  cove  at  the  foot  of  the 
mountain,  and  near  a  gap  which  had  so 
far  been  improved  by  filling  and  excavation 

42 


cMcLean 

as  to  render  it  possible  for  the  stage  coach 
to  climb  the  ridge,  and  so  reach  the  valley 
beyond. 

On  entering  the  office  of  the  inn,  if  it  be 
proper  to  designate  the  dingy  room  used  for 
the  reception  of  all  comers  by  so  imposing 
a  title,  the  negro  found  the  atmosphere  of 
the  apartment  so  befogged  and  befouled  by 
the  smoke  of  execrable  tobacco,  and  the 
odors  of  vile  spirits,  that  sickened  and  be 
wildered,  he  failed  to  realize  at  once  that  he 
was  in  the  presence  of  six  or  eight  southern 
gentlemen,  dressed  in  seedy  butternut  cloth 
ing,  and  crowned  with  slouchy  hats,  who 
were  leaning  over  the  rude  counter,  imbib 
ing  leisurely  a  medicinal  decoction  of  which 
whisky  and  tansy  were  the  principal  ingre 
dients. 

Colonel  Lafayette  Huskins,  the  landlord 
and  proprietor  of  the  Gap  Inn,  now  stood 
behind  the  bar  with  his  thumbs  in  the  arm 
holes  of  his  vest  exchanging  with  his  cus 
tomers  such  observations  relative  to  the  war 
and  the  weather  as  he  deemed  profitable  to 
them.  He  had  evidently  been  intended  for 
a  corpulent  man ;  a  liberal  supply  of  bone 
and  cuticle  had  been  furnished  him,  but 

43 


cMcLean 

owing  doubtless  to  circumstances  which 
those  who  originated  the  architectural  de 
sign  for  his  being  did  not  foresee,  and  could 
not  control,  he  had  failed  to  meet  to  any 
considerable  extent  the  expectations  of  his 
projectors.  Instead  of  filling  out  in  a  ripe, 
well  rounded  manner,  pleasant  to  look  upon, 
he  began  to  wither  before  maturity,  and  as 
the  result  of  this  untimely  shrinkage,  the 
skin  now  hung  about  his  face  and  neck,  su 
perabundant,  flabby  and  blotched,  while  that 
part  of  his  structure  which  lay  below  the 
waist  had  evidently  experienced  a  very 
material  subsidence,  if  not  an  utter  collapse. 
In  short  there  was  a  grandeur  of  design 
and  an  incompleteness  of  execution,  in  Col 
onel  Huskins'  bodily  temple,  so  apparent 
that  the  spectator  involuntarily  wondered 
how  an  edifice  intended  to  be  so  large  could 
have  come  to  be  so  little. 

The  colonel,  however,  was  a  man  of  con 
siderable  consequence  in  his  locality ;  he 
was  at  the  meridian  of  life,  and  his  voca 
tion  had  brought  him  in  contact  with  all 
classes  of  southern  gentlemen;  in  fact  the 
time  was  not  long  past  when  the  prominent 
lawyers  and  statesmen  of  Tennessee  and 

44 


cMcLean 

North  Carolina  dined  and  lodged  quite  fre 
quently  at  the  Gap  Inn.  From  these  he  had 
picked  up  broad  but  somewhat  detached 
and  fragmentary  views  of  national  affairs, 
and  almost  hourly  threw  out  with  his  to 
bacco  spittle  nuggets  of  political  wisdom, 
calculated  to  excite  the  admiration  and 
secure  the  respect  and  confidence  of  his 
hearers.  Indeed,  at  one  period  prior  to  the 
war,  he  had  been  seriously  urged  by  the 
electors  of  Wilkes  and  Watauga  counties, 
as  a  candidate  for  congress,  and  with  a  view 
to  qualifying  himself  fully  for  this  respon 
sible  position,  he  had  gone  to  the  expense 
of  getting  from  the  most  skillful  tailor  of 
Wilkesboro,  a  blue  dress  coat  with  brass 
buttons,  that  being,  in  his  opinion,  the  cos 
tume  indispensable  to  a  southern  statesman, 
and  the  only  thing  needed  to  fit  a  man  for 
a  seat  in  the  national  house  of  representa 
tives,  or  United  States  senate. 

The  men  who  stood  smoking  and  drink 
ing  at  the  bar  of  the  Gap  Inn;  could  not  in 
justice  be  set  down  as  fair  types  of  the 
average  southron,  although  they  were  in 
fact  representatives  of  a  class  quite  numer 
ous  in  the  south.  They  had  been  in  the 

45 


cNLctean 

confederate  service,  but  finding  the  re 
straints  of  military  discipline  grated  harshly 
on  the  tastes  and  habits  of  early  life,  and 
conflicted  with  that  spirit  of  license  some 
times  called  liberty,  for  which  the  white 
people  of  the  south  are  especially  noted, 
they  had  abandoned  the  army  and  now 
sought  exemption  from  further  service 
among  the  mountain  fastnesses  of  west 
North  Carolina  and  east  Tennessee.  The 
two  qualities  upon  which  they  prided  them 
selves  the  most  highly  were  first,  the  fact 
that  they  were  gentlemen,  and  second,  the 
fact  that  a  gentleman  was  so  much  superior 
to  a  negro  it  would  be  sacrilege  to  mention 
the  two  in  the  same  connection. 

Restless,  courageous  and  unscrupulous, 
they  were  ever  ready  to  engage  in  any  en 
terprise  which  did  not  demand  for  too  long 
a  period  the  sacrifice  of  their  idle  and  shift 
less  habits  of  life.  Tolerated  and  some 
times  encouraged  even,  and  used  by  the 
loyal  men  of  west  North  Carolina  and  east 
Tennessee,  there  were  but  few  points  of 
resemblance  between  them  and  the  mount 
ain  people,  and  these  were  in  non  essentials. 
They  dressed  very  much  alike,  and  their 

46 


cMcLean 

dialect  was  the  same;  hut  iti  most  other 
respects  they  were  totally  dissimilar. 

The  Union  men,  as  a  rule,  were  small 
but  independent  farmers  or  farmers'  sons, 
whose  homes  were  on  the  mountain  slopes, 
or  in  the  little  valleys  which  abound  in  that 
region.  They  had  been  reared  to  labor 
with  their  own  hands,  often  uneducated  in 
deed,  but  generally  temperate,  honest  and 
thrifty.  Imbued  to  some  extent  with  the 
prejudice  of  race  peculiar  to  a  slave  state, 
they  yet  had  the  sense  to  know  and  feel 
that  the  tendency  of  slavery  was  to  impov 
erish  and  deteriorate  the  whites  as  well  as 
the  blacks.  They,  therefore,  regarded  the 
effort  to  dismember  the  Union  for  the  sole 
purpose  of  extending  and  perpetuating  this 
institution,  as  a  monstrous  crime  against 
civilization,  for  which  there  could  be  neither 
justification  nor  palliating  excuse. 

Mrs.  Brevar's  servant,  full  of  the  message 
he  had  now  carried  for  twelve  hours,  and 
impatient  of  delay,  finally  called  attention 
to  himself  and  his  errand  by  saying: 

"Massa  Davy  McLean  was  took  las' 
night." 

47 


cMcLean 

"The  h — 1  he  was !"  shouted  one  of  the 
party  as  all  eyes  centered  on  the  negro. 
"Who  took  him?" 

"Dunno;  secesh  hoss  company.  Young 
massa  Frank  Brevar  waz  de  on'y  one  dis 
nigger  knowed." 

"The  son  of  'Squire  Hugh  Brevar?"  the 
landlord  asked  after  removing  a  corn  cob 
pipe  from  his  mouth. 

"Yasser;  yasser;  de  'Squire's  son 
Frank." 

"What'd  they  do  with  McLean?"  con 
tinued  the  landlord. 

"Dunno,  sah ;  hyar  mistiss'  letta ;  s'pose 
dat'll  tell,  sah." 

Colonel  Huskins  took  the  letter  from  the 
negro,  opened  and  examined  it  carefully, 
then  shook  his  head  in  a  mysterious  way 
and  handed  the  document  to  a  gentleman 
near  him,  remarking  as  he  did  so : 

"Bad  go,  Majah  Rutherford — bad  go  fer 
Davy." 

The  person  thus  addressed  examined  the 
paper  with  all  the  attention  a  lawyer  would 
be  likely  to  concentrate  on  a  bill  of  par 
ticulars  in  which  he  sought  to  detect  some 
flaw  that  would  be  fatal  to  it;  but  as  if 
48 


cMcLean 

unable  to  find  any  radical  defect  in  the  in 
strument,  he  finally  turned  it  over  to  a  com 
panion  with  the  remark : 

"They'll  hang  him,  suah." 

And  so  widow  Brevar's  letter  passed 
from  hand  to  hand  eliciting  remarks  not  at 
all  encouraging  as  to  the  probable  fate  of 
McLean,  until  it  finally  reached  a  young 
man  who  did  not  care  to  plume  himself 
on  the  extent  of  his  literary  attainments, 
and  so  confessed  frankly  that  he  could  not 
read. 

"What !  can't  read  ?"  exclaimed  Col.  Hus- 
kins  in  astonishment. 

"Can't  read !"  said  Major  Rutherford  in 
a  manner  which  indicated  pity  for  the  un 
fortunate  mental  condition  of  the  young 
man. 

"Can't  read,"  echoed  four  or  five  others 
with  various  intonations  of  voice  expressive 
of  surprise,  regret  and  ridicule. 

"Not  a  word ;  what  does  the  old  woman 
say,  any  how?"  returned  the  young  man 
angrily. 

'"Ho  there,  Sam,"  shouted  Colonel  Hus- 
kins,  summoning  an  unseen  person  from  an 
adjoining  room. 

4Q 


"Yasser,"  responded  Sam  as  his  vvooly 
head  appeared  in  the  doorway. 

"Go  on  ter  th'  ridge  quicker'n  lightnin', 
mind,  an'  tell  Captain  Bender  to  come  hyar; 
the  rebs  hev  got  Davy  McLean." 

As  Sam  shot  out  of  the  front  door  in 
obedience  to  his  master's  command,  the  illit 
erate  young  man  raised  his  voice  again,  and 
inquired  rather  impatiently: 

"What'n  '1  does  the  old  woman's  letter 
say?" 

"Don't  be  in  a  hurry,  Dick,"  replied 
Colonel  Huskins;  "let's  drink  an'  think  it 
over." 

"How  'n  '1  can  a  man  think  over  what 
he  don't  know?"  persisted  Dick;  "read  her 
out." 

The  landlord  at  this  juncture  took  a  sup 
of  whisky  to  stimulate  his  intellect  for  the 
task  before  him,  then  unfolded  the  letter 
slowly,  scanned  it  with  great  deliberation, 
and  remarked  solemnly : 

"Kind  o'  crabbed,  blind  sort  of  han'  the 
ole  woman  writes,  isn't  it,  Majah?" 

"Damn  crabbed,"  replied  Major  Ruther 
ford  emphatically;  "it  beats  me;  it'll  beat 
anybody." 

jo 


cMcLean 

"Yer  right,  Majah,"  answered  Colonel 
Huskins,  regarding  the  document  contempt 
uously.  "I'll  bet  the  drinks  fer  the  hull 
party  that  even  Bender  can't  read  that  air 
writin'.  As  yo'  very  justly  observed  Ma 
jah,  it's  damn  crabbed." 

"O,  ho !  yo'  can't  read,"  exclaimed  the 
ignorant  young  man,  as  he  glanced  deri 
sively  at  the  landlord.  "O,  yo'  precious 
fraud,  to  be  playin'  yo'se'f  off  on  me  fo'  a 
edicated  gen'leman." 

"Mr.  Richard  Smelter,"  said  Colonel 
Huskins,  taking  a  long  breath,  and  thus 
swelling  himself  out  until  he  seemed  rather 
imposing,  "that  langwidge,  sah,  is  not  the 
langwidge  wich  a  gen'leman  should  ad 
dress  to  a  gen'leman,  sah.  Fraud,  sah,  is 
a  approbrious  epithet,  sah,  an'  I  shall  per 
mit  no  man  in  No'th  Ca'lina  to  denominate 
me  a  fraud." 

"Lafe  Huskins,"  responded  Mr.  Smelter, 
hotly,  "yo'  dunno  any  mor'n  a  dam'  nigger, 
an'  yer  pretendin',  all  th'  time  to  be  a  edi 
cated  man.  Dry  up !" 

"Mr.  Richard  Smelter,"  replied  the  land 
lord  in  a  solemn  and  chilly  way,  "I  kin  bar 
much  from  a  frien',  sah,  fp}  I'm  a  kind 

51 


cNLcLean 

hearted  man,  an'  generous,  an'  so  was  my 
fambly  afo'  me,  sah ;  it  is  one  o'  th'  oldest 
famblies  in  No'th  Ca'liny,  sah.  We  was 
among  the  fust  to  come.  We  surrendered 
titles  and  estates  in  the  ole  world  because 
we  loved  liberty,  sah,  an'  hated  despotism. 
When  th'  Huskinses  concluded  on  doin'  a 
thing  they  never  stood  on  expense,  sah. 
We're  gentle  as  lambs  to  our  frien's,  but 
dangerous  as  hyenas  when  our  blood's  up, 
sah.  My  gran'father  fit  on  King's  mount 
ain  under  Gineral  Seiver,  sah,  an'  by  Gord  I 
won't  allow  no  man  in  No'th  Ca'liny  to  call 
me  a  fraud,  an'  add  to  th'  insult  by  sayin' 
I  dunno  no  mor'n  a  dam'  nigger." 

"Gen'lemen,  gen'lemen,  keep  cool,"  in 
terrupted  Major  Rutherford;  "let's  arrange 
this  persinal  difficulty  amicably,  gen'lemen." 

"No,  sah ;  no,  sah,"  broke  in  Colonel 
Huskins  with  augmented  violence;  "there 
can  be  no  arrangement  short  of  a  retraction 
of  the  approbious  langwidge,  an'  unless 
that's  to  once,  th'  insult  shall  be  wiped  out 
in  blood,  sah — I'll  sen'  him  a  message,  sah. 
I'll  show  him  the  Huskinses  is  gen'lemen." 

"I  never  said  yo'  was  n't  a  gen'leman," 
shouted  Mr.  Smelter. 

52 


cMcLean 

"Yo'  didn't?"  yelled  the  landlord. 

"No,  sah ;  never,  sah.  I  say  yo'  air  a 
gen'leman,  Colonel  Huskins." 

"Well,  that's  manly;  that's  what  I  call 
noble.  I  forgive  yo',  Smelter;  let's  shake 
an'  drink,  sah,  at  my  expense;  understan', 
sah,  at  my  expense." 

Upon  this  most  fortunate  termination  of 
a  terrible  misunderstanding  which  appar 
ently  involved  the  honor  of  the  landlord  of 
the  Gap  Inn,  and  possibly  the  lives  of  two 
of  its  inmates,  a  tall,  raw-boned  man  of 
thirty-five,  dressed  in  the  prevailing  butter 
nut,  and  heavily  armed,  strode  into  the 
apartment  and  demanded  rather  peremptor 
ily  to  know  what  information  they  had  re 
specting  the  capture  of  McLean.  Colonel 
Huskins  pointed  to  the  colored  messenger, 
and  then  produced  Mrs.  Brevar's  letter. 

"This  was  addressed  to  me,"  he  said 
angrily ;  "why,  sir,  did  you  not  direct  the 
fellow  where  to  take  it?  You  certainly  had 
no  right  to  open  it,  and  much  less  to  retain 
it." 

"Th'  nigger  gave  it  to  me,"  stammered 
Huskins,  "an5  I  thought  it  was  writ  to  me, 
sah." 

53 


McLean 

"All  right,  Huskins.  John,"  said  Bender, 
addressing  a  person  on  horseback  in  front 
of  the  door,  who  appeared  to  be  serving  in 
the  capacity  of  an  orderly,  "ride  to  the  sum 
mit  and  tell  Lieutenant  Witham  to  gather 
the  men  and  bring  them  to  the  Gap  Inn  at 
once.  We  march  to  Wilkesboro'  to-night, 
and  too  much  time  has  already  been  lost." 

"Where  is  McLean,  sah?"  asked  Major 
Rutherford. 

"In  Salisbury,  I  suppose,  by  this  time." 

"Yo'  air  not  gwine  ter  march  to  Salis 
bury  arter  him?" 

"No,"  said  Bender,  "but  I  propose  to 
make  old  Hugh  Brevar  see  that  he's  brought 
back  safe  and  sound,  or  I'll  burn  his  house 
and  barns,  and  hang  him  to  boot." 

"Good,"  replied  Rutherford ;  "we'll  go 
'long;  it  may  be  yo'll  run  agin  a  squad  of 
home  guards  at  Wilkesboro',  an'  we'll  hev 
some  fun." 

"All  right,  Major.  How  many  men  can 
you  muster  on  horseback?" 

"Six,  and  they're  as  good  as  any  six  men 
in  No'th  Ca'lina,  sah." 


54 


cMcLean 

"Get  ready ;  we  shall  start  in  an  hour, 
and  if  there  is  any  fun  going  you  shall  share 
it." 

At  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  there 
were  gathered  in  front  of  the  Gap  Inn  a 
hundred  men  mounted  on  horses,  mules  and 
asses,  some  with  saddles,  others  bare-back, 
and  still  others  with  cushions  of  straw  fast 
ened  on  the  animals  by  girths  of  twisted 
tow,  or  hempen  cord.  Their  clothing  was 
in  all  the  various  stages  of  dilapidation,  and 
of  all  colors,  the  one  predominating,  how 
ever,  being  that  tint  of  dirty  brown  known 
as  butternut ;  the  men  were  generally  armed 
with  shotguns,  but  occasionally  there  could 
be  seen  a  rifle,  and  still  more  rarely  a 
Springfield  musket.  The  officers  were  well 
mounted,  wore  no  insignia  of  rank,  and  no 
side  arms,  but  carried  in  addition  to  a 
double-barreled  shotgun,  a  brace  of  heavy 
revolvers  buckled  by  a  belt  to  the  waist. 

At  dusk  this  nondescript  army  entered 
Wilkesboro'  howling  like  demons.  The  citi 
zens  of  the  village,  concluding  their  object 
was  pillage,  at  once  closed  shops  and  stores. 
Bender,  the  leader  of  the  troop,  did  his  ut- 


cMcLean 

most  to  take  his  command  through  without 
halting,  but  this  he  found  utterly  impossible. 
Some  of  the  men,  as  if  guided  by  instinct, 
stopped  in  front  of  a  small  store,  broke  in 
the  door,  and  rolling  a  barrel  of  apple-jack 
to  the  sidewalk,  helped  themselves  to  what 
they  wanted  to  drink  on  the  spot,  and  to  all 
they  had  the  means  of  carrying  away.  Be 
fore  they  left  Wilkesboro',  there  were  many 
drunken  and  boisterous  men  in  the  troop, 
and  probably  none  wilder  and  more  reckless 
in  their  behavior  than  the  little  squad  under 
Rutherford. 

It  was  still  eight  miles  or  more  to  the 
Brevar  plantation.  The  horses  had  by  this 
time  become  weary,  and  the  cavalcade 
moved  slowly,  but  good  feeling  prevailed, 
and  an  east  Tennesseean,  prompted  prob 
ably  by  the  apple-jack,  and  possibly  by  the 
moonlight,  which  fell  softly  on  the  hills, 
sang  in  a  good  round  voice: 

"A  few  days  more  will  tell  the  tale, 
And    homeward    we'll    be    rushing; 

And  anxious  hearts  in  sorrow  now, 
Will  then  with  joy  be  gushing." 


V 

HUGH  BREVAR 

CHE  residence  of  Hugh  Brevar,  a 
large  wooden  structure  with  a  lower 
and  upper  balcony  extending  across 
its  entire  front,  stood  modestly  back  from 
the  public  highway.  Its  approach  was  a 
broad  avenue  overshadowed  by  stately  elms. 
It  was  too  dark  under  the  trees  for  one 
going  to  the  house  to  see  anything  save 
the  gray  line  of  the  road ;  but  the  murmur 
of  voices  suggested  the  existence  of  some 
extraordinary  commotion  in  the  immediate 
vicinity  of  the  mansion.  The  mountain 
men  had  formed  an  irregular  line  of  bat 
tle  on  the  lawn  before  it,  and  Hugh  Brevar 
stood  on  the  balcony  confronting  them. 

"I  knew  nothing,"  he  said  earnestly,  "of 
the  capture  of  McLean  until  you  told  me  of 
it,  and  could  have  had  nothing  whatever 
to  do  with  it." 

"But,  Mr.  Brevar,"  replied  Bender,  "your 
son  was  one  of  the  party  wrhich  seized  him, 
and  we  shall  hold  you  rseponsible  for  his 

57 


cMcLean 

safe  return.  If  a  hair  of  McLean's  head 
is  harmed,  we  shall  make  you  suffer  for  it." 

"Why  sir,"  retorted  Brevar,  hotly,  "my 
son  is  not  in  my  keeping ;  he  is  a  soldier  of 
the  confederate  army,  acting  under  orders, 
doubtless.  You  cannot  in  justice,  therefore, 
hold  me  responsible  for  his  acts.  Davy  Mc 
Lean  and  I  are  friends,  and  have  been  all 
our  lives.  I  would  make  any  possible  sacri 
fice  to  aid  him  for  friendship's  sake,  but 
what  can  I  do?" 

"You  can  notify  the  commandant  at  Sal 
isbury  that  you  are  in  the  hands  of  the 
loyal  men  of  North  Carolina  and  Tennes 
see,  who  propose  to  hang  you,  and  will  do 
so,  if  McLean  is  not  immediately  released." 

"But  I  cannot  do  that,  sir;  if  free  I 
could  make  an  effort  to  save  the  life  of  a 
friend,  but  if  in  duress  it  would  be  accounted 
cowardice  to  prefer  such  an  appeal  as  you 
suggest." 

"Very  well,  sir,"  replied  Bender,  firmly; 
"if  this  is  your  final  determination,  I  will 
give  the  order  to  burn  your  house,  and  shall 
take  you  to  the  mountains  and  in  some  way 
send  the  message  myself,  for  so  sure  as  men 

58 


cMcLean 

die,  you  shall  suffer  the  same  fate  awarded 
to  Davy  McLean." 

"But,  my  dear  sir,"  urged  Brevar  softly, 
"is  not  this  grossly  unjust?" 

"War,  Mr.  Brevar,"  replied  Bender,  "is 
not  a  holiday  pastime,  neither  is  it  a  work 
of  charity;  those  engaged  in  it  are  not  ex 
pected  to  adjust  the  scales  of  justice  to  a 
hair,  and  award  to  each  one  his  exact  due. 
Those  who  furnish  the  sinews  of  war,  how 
ever,  are  as  guilty  as  those  who  fight.  You 
are,  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  at  war 
against  the  union ;  you  contribute  of  your 
substance  to  maintain  armies  in  rebellion 
against  it ;  you,  and  such  as  you,  are  far 
more  responsible  for  the  present  condition 
of  affairs  than  the  rank  and  file  of  the 
Confederate  army;  by  your  wealth  and  in 
fluence  you  have  arrayed  whole  communities 
against  the  flag,  and  there  is  no  good  reason 
why  you  should  be  exempt  from  the  evils 
which  you  have  precipitated  upon  the 
country." 

"But,  sir,  would  you  render  my  family 
homeless  ?" 

"Without  good  cause,  I  would  not,  but 
when  you  entered  upon  this  accursed  rebel- 

59 


cMcLean 

lion  you  made  thousands  of  families  home 
less.  You  put  the  torch  to  my  house,  to 
McLean's  house,  to  the  house  of  every  loyal 
man  in  the  south."  And  then  in  a  voice 
which  quivered  somewhat,  he  continued: 
"You  did  not  stop  to  inquire  about  our 
families;  we  were  poor  indeed,  but  our 
cabins  were  to  us  what  your  mansions  are 
to  you.  They  sheltered  us  from  the  storm, 
made  nests  for  wives  and  little  ones.  You 
gave  the  provocation ;  you  made  the  first 
advances;  you  taught  us  the  way;  it  is 
well,  therefore,  that  payment  should  be  re 
turned  to  you  in  kind.  Lieutenant  Witham 
take  charge  of  this  man  and  see  that  he  is 
conducted  safely  to  the  Ridge ;  men,  fire 
these  buildings !" 

The  great  shout  with  which  this  com 
mand  was  greeted  showed  that  it  accorded 
fully  with  the  spirit  and  inclination  of  the 
rough  men  who  had,  during  the  progress 
of  this  discussion  gathered  about  their 
leader. 

As  Captain  Bender  turned  on  his  heel  to 
indicate  that  the  end  of  the  controversy 
had  been  reached,  fifty  men  started  to  obey 
the  order,  when  McLean,  who  had  just  ar- 

60 


cMcLean 

rived,  sprang  to  the  balcony  and  placing 
himself  beside  Brevar,  shouted  : 

"Countermand  your  order,  Captain  Ben 
der." 

"Why,  McLean,"  exclaimed  Bender,  "I 
thought  you  were  in  Salisbury ;  we  have 
been  worrying  about  you." 

"So  I  would  have  been  but  for  a  lucky 
accident.  Hugh,"  continued  McLean,  turn 
ing  to  Brevar  and  taking  his  hand,  "you 
are  free ;  no  harm  shall  come  to  you,  my 
old  friend,  and  no  loss  save  the  loss  of  a 
good  supper  which  I  know  will  be  no  loss  to 
you.  Provide  for  Captain  Bender's  men 
and  we  will  leave  you  in  peace  and  safety." 

The  mountain  men,  recognizing  McLean, 
began  to  yell  heartily. 

"My  men,"  said  he  in  a  voice  which  all 
could  hear,  "I  am  rejoiced  at  the  good  will 
you  have  manifested  for  me,  and  thank  you 
cordially.  I  was,  as  you  have  heard,  seized 
by  a  little  squad  of  cavalry  while  in  my  bed 
at  the  house  of  my  sister  in  Davie  county, 
but,  fortunately,  on  the  way  to  Salisbury 
I  was  rescued  by  two  gallant  Federal  offi 
cers  who  had  escaped  from  prison  and  were 
making  their  way-  north.  These  officers  and 

61 


cMcLean 

four  prisoners  are  here.  Permit  me  to  in 
troduce  to  you  Captains  Lindsay  and  North- 
rup,  of  the  National  army." 

As  the  two  men  stepped  forward  and 
bowed  to  the  mob,  they  were  greeted  with 
a  prolonged  yell  of  delight.  When  silence 
was  again  restored,  McLean  turned  to  Cap 
tain  Bender  and  said: 

"I  deliver  into  your  keeping  three  of 
these  men,  and  ask  that  you  will  have  them 
conducted  to  a  post  of  the  United  States 
army  and  turned  over  as  prisoners.  The 
other  I  shall  take  the  liberty  to  put  in  the 
custody  of  his  father."  Cutting  the  cord 
which  bound  young  Brevar's  hands,  he  con 
tinued  :  "Hugh,  I  present  your  son  to  you, 
and  trust  that  henceforth  you  will  keep 
him  out  of  mischief." 

The  servants  of  the  Brevar  household 
were  already  busy  preparing  food  for  the 
mountain  men.  In  a  place  where  it  was 
necessary  each  day  to  provide  for  a  hundred 
souls,  white  and  black,  the  draft  now  made 
upon  the  resources  of  the  establishment  was 
easily  and  speedily  met.  The  officers  of  the 
command,  with  Lindsay,  Northrup,  Mc 
Lean,  and  as  many  of  the  men  as  could  be 

62 


cMcLean 

accommodated,  were  soon  invited  to  the  din 
ing  room,  while  others  were  provided  for 
at  tables  placed  on  the  balcony. 

Hugh  Brevar  was  a  man  of  sixty;  the 
years  of  his  life  had,  however,  dealt  gently 
with  him.  He  was  tall  and  well  rounded, 
with  a  smooth  face,  a  prominent  chin,  gray 
eyes  and  a  well-developed  head,  now  par 
tially  bald.  Educated,  genial,  hospitable  and 
rich,  nothing  usually  pleased  him  better  than 
to  have  his  table  surrounded  by  friends. 
On  this  occasion,  however,  he  was  not  by 
any  means  in  that  pleasant  frame  of  mind 
so  necessary  to  enable  him  to  make  his 
guests  welcome,  and  render  them  easy  and 
comfortable.  He  could  not  rid  himself  of 
the  thought  that  a  great  misfortune  had  but 
a  moment  ago  threatened,  and  that  he  was 
now  indebted  for  safety  to  the  accidental 
interference  of  a  friend,  rather  than  to  any 
protection  which  his  government  had  been 
able  to  afford. 

Mrs.  Brevar  appeared  at  the  table,  greeted 
McLean  cordiallv,  and  bowed  with  pleasant 
and  graceful  dignity  to  the  officers  as  they 
were  presented  by  her  husband.  She  was 
probably  ten  years  his  junior  and  in  hef 

63 


cMcLean 

youth  had  evidently  been  a  woman  of  rare 
beauty.  She  still  bore,  in  every  lineament 
of  her  countenance  and  movement  of  her 
body,  the  evidence  of  thorough  cultivation 
and  refinement. 

"Well,  Frank,"  said  the  father  brusquely, 
"it  is  not  at  all  creditable  to  you  to  be  cap 
tured  by  two  unarmed  men.  How  did  it 
happen,  sir?  Our  people  are  in  the  habit  of 
insisting  that  one  southerner  can  whip 
three  Yankees,  but  in  this  instance  the  rule 
seems  to  have  been  reversed." 

"The  fact  is,"  replied  Frank,  blushing, 
"we  had  recrossed  the  Yadkin,  and  had  no 
thought  of  the  presence  of  enemies;  we 
had  halted  to  rest  and  lunch,  and  for  the 
purpose  of  relieving  the  animals  as  well 
as  ourselves,  had  taken  the  saddles  from 
the  horses,  and  laid  aside  our  arms.  To 
add  to  our  bad  luck  Captain  Locke  and 
Uncle  Davy  got  into  an  angry  altercation 
which  attracted  the  attention  of  all,  when, 
at  the  opportune  moment,  these  gentlemen 
rushed  in,  knocked  us  down,  seized  our  car 
bines,  and  made  us  prisoners.  It  was  simply 
a  piece  of  good  luck  on  their  part,  and 
bad  luck  on  ours.  The  whole  affair  was 


cMcLean 

over  before  we  really  knew  what  had  oc 
curred.  I  did  not  see  the  gentlemen  until 
after  I  was  knocked  down." 

"That  was  soon  enough,"  said  McLean, 
dryly. 

"But  who  could  have  provided  against 
such  a  singular  combination  of  circum 
stances,"  continued  young  Brevar,  as  if  until 
the  matter  was  cleared  up  there  would  be 
a  shadow  upon  his  honor  as  a  soldier.  "No 
one  could  have  conjectured  that  there  were 
two  Federal  officers  or  soldiers  in  David 
son  county,  and  that  they  were  near  the 
place  where  our  halt  was  made.  After  re- 
crossing  the  Yadkin  we  felt  as  absolutely 
safe  as  if  in  the  streets  of  Salisbury  or  Lex 
ington;  even  on  this  side  we  should  have 
apprehended  no  danger  except  from  stroll 
ing  bands  of  bushwhackers." 

"Mr.  Brevar's  statement  is  correct ;  it 
was  simply  a  matter  of  accident,"  said  Lind 
say  ;  "we  stumbled  on  Captain  Locke's 
party  while  feeling  our  way  to  the  ferry. 
We  saw  that  three  blows  would  do  the 
work,  and  so  the  blows  were  struck." 

"Captain  Northrup,"  said  the  elder  Bre 
var,  "have  not  your  people  at  the  North 

65 


about  concluded  you  cannot  conquer  the 
South,  and  that  it  would  be  better  to  cease 
fighting?" 

"There  will  be  no  cessation,"  responded 
Northrup,  "until  the  South  lays  down  its 
arms,  and  the  southern  people  submit  to  the 
laws.  In  fact,  we  are  more  hopeful  and 
determined  now  than  ever." 

"It  is  impossible  for  you  to  succeed,  sir." 
"On  the  contrary,  Mr.  Brevar,  everything 
now  points  to  a  speedy  and  successful  ter 
mination  of  the  conflict.     The  resources  of 
the  north  have  hardly  felt  the  drain  which 
the  war  has  made  upon  them,  while  those 
of  the  South  are  nearly  exhausted.     You 
have  made  a  brave,  nay,  a  desperate  fight, 
but  you  cannot  continue  it  much  longer." 
"It  will  never  end,  sir,   until  the  inde 
pendence  of  the  Confederate  states  is  recog 
nized.     If  I  understand  the  temper  of  the 
southern  people,  they  would  prefer  to  die 
rather  than  yield  one  iota  of  their  rights." 
"What  rights,  my  friend  ?" 
"The  right  to  secede,  for  one." 
"No    such   right   ever   existed,"   replied 
Northrup,  calmly.    "I  am  not  a  lawyer  and 
therefore  will  not  undertake  to  discuss  the 

66 


^McLean 

legal  points  involved;  but  craving  your 
pardon,  it  seems  to  me  utterly  absurd  that 
thirteen  or  thirty-four  states  should  have 
entered  into  a  compact  which  any  one  of 
them  might  disregard  at  pleasure.  The 
people  of  the  United  States  did  a  foolish 
thing,  indeed,  if,  in  order  to  form  a  more 
perfect  union,  they  ordained  and  established 
a  constitution  which  the  people  of  one  state, 
or  a  dozen  states,  might  at  any  time  set  at 
naught.  This  would  have  been  simply 
child's  play,  Mr.  Brevar,  and  our  fathers 
were. earnest  men,  incapable  of  such  folly.'"' 

"But,  sir,"  replied  Mr.  Brevar  with  feel 
ing,  "you  struck  the  first  blow  at  the  consti 
tution  when,  by  the  selection  of  a  sectional 
president,  you  threatened  the  institutions  of 
the  south." 

"On  the  contrary,  we  elected  Mr.  Lincoln 
in  the  precise  manner  prescribed  by  the  con 
stitution,  and  he  gave  you  the  most  solemn 
assurances  that  he  had  no  purpose  directly, 
or  indirectly,  to  interfere  with  the  institu 
tion  of  slavery,  affirming  he  had  neither 
the  lawful  right,  nor  the  inclination  to 
do  so.  For  nearly  three  years  our  armies 
have  now  suffered  hindrance,  defeat,  and 

67 


cMcLean 

humiliation,  because  we  have  sought  to  re 
store  the  Union  without  disturbing  slavery ; 
but  we  have  struck  it  at  last,  thank  God, 
and  we  shall  now  crush  to  atoms  what  Mr. 
Alexander  H.  Stephens  calls  the  'corner 
stone'  of  the  Confederacy." 

"Admitting  for  the  sake  of  argument, 
that  you  have  the  power,  where  do  you 
obtain  the  right  to  do  so?" 

"From  yourselves;  you  gave  it  to  us. 
When  you  rebelled  against  lawful  authority 
and  thrust  the  war  upon  us  you  conceded 
to  us  every  right  which  belongs  to  bellig 
erent  powers.  You  made  it  lawful  for  us 
to  slay,  destroy,  annihilate  whatever  hin 
dered  the  restoration  or  preservation  of  the 
Union,  and  the  establishment  of  a  sub 
stantial  and  permanent  peace.  We  had,  in 
deed,  a  moral  right  higher  than  this,  but 
like  selfish  men,  bound  by  that  sort  of  honor 
which  is  said  to  exist  among  thieves,  we 
turned  a  deaf  ear  to  the  appeals  of  humanity, 
disregarded  duty,  and  proposed  in  good 
faith  to  abide  by  the  contract,  and  while 
pretending  to  be  a  free  people,  permit  mil 
lions  of  mankind  to  be  enslaved.  As  we 
did  not  avail  ourselves  of  the  higher  right, 

68 


and  did  not  seek  to  do  so,  we  can  claim 
now  simply  that  we  are  doing  a  good  work 
because  dire  necessity  compels  us  to  it,  and 
for  which  we  are  entitled  to  no  credit  either 
from  God  or  man." 

"You  will  get  blow  for  blow,  Captain 
Northrup ;  the  south  cannot  be  conquered." 

"The  south  will  be  compelled  to  sub 
mit  to  the  authority  of  the  legal  govern 
ment." 

"Hugh  Brevar,"  interrupted  McLean, 
"you  objected  to  the  secession  of  North 
Carolina." 

"Certainly,  because  I  hoped  to  redress 
our  grievances  in  a  peaceful  way.  I  never 
doubted  that  North  Carolina  had  the  right 
to  secede." 

"Then  you  regarded  the  Union  as  a 
loose  Confederacy  which  might  be  broken 
at  the  option  of  any  one  of  the  states?" 

"Certainly." 

"That  is  saying  substantially  that  thirty- 
four  men  have  made  a  contract  which  any 
one  of  the  thirty-four  may  disregard.  It 
will  not  do,  Hugh;  as  Captain  Northrup 
has  suggested,  this  would  be  mere  child's 
play.  Why,  if  this  right  of  secession  ex- 


cMcLean 

isted,  was  it  not  recognized  in  the  constitu 
tion  so  explicitly  as  to  leave  no  room  for 
doubt  or  misunderstanding?" 

Mr.  Brevar  was  prepared  of  course  to 
reply  to  all  this  from  the  southern  stand 
point,  and  would  have  done  so,  but  Cap 
tain  Bender  here  interrupted  the  discussion 
by  saying: 

"I  have  a  long  march  before  me,  and 
shall  therefore  have  to  ask  you  to  excuse 
me." 

As  the  leader  of  the  mountain  men  re 
tired,  the  officers  and  soldiers  of  his  com 
mand  followed  him  in  a  tumultuous  way. 
The  supper  being  now  ended,  Mr.  Brevar 
invited  the  remaining  guests  into  a  hand 
some  parlor,  where  the  heavy  antique  fur 
niture  of  a  past  generation  still  rendered 
service. 

"By  the  way,  Hugh,"  said  McLean,  in 
a  tone  which  indicated  surprise,  "where  is 
Alice?  How  does  it  happen  she  did  not 
notify  you  of  our  coming?" 

"Alice !"  exclaimed  Mr.  Brevar,  an 
xiously;  "did  you  meet  Alice?" 

"Certainly." 


McLean 

"Is  she  not  in  the  house?"  said  young 
Brevar,  addressing  his  father. 

"I  suppose  not.  She  rode  over  to  brother 
John's  after  dinner.  I  think  she  must  he 
there." 

"I  am  quite  sure  she  is  not,"  replied  the 
son.  "She  met  us  five  or  six  miles  on  the 
way  thither,  but  turned  back." 

"Yes,"  said  McLean,  emphatically,  "she 
returned  for  the  very  purpose  of  inform 
ing  you  of  our  coming." 

"This  is  strange;  I  will  make  inquiries 
about  it,"  said  Mr.  Brevar,  as  he  hastily 
left  the  apartment,  followed  by  his  son. 

When  he  re-entered  the  room  a  few 
minutes  later,  he  informed  them  that  Alice 
had  not  come  back,  but  was  still  supposed 
to  be  at  her  uncle's. 

"I  am  sure  she  is  not,"  said  McLean. 

"She  could  not  have  missed  the  road," 
suggested  Northrup. 

"No,"  replied  Mr.  Brevar,  "she  knows 
every  road  and  path  in  Wilkes  and  Tredell." 

"Possibly  she  may  have  been  deterred 
from  returning  by  the  presence  of  Bender's 
men,"  suggested  McLean. 


cMcLean 

"No,  I  think  she  would  have  found  some 
way  of  making  her  presence  on  the  planta 
tion  known,"  replied  the  father,  "but  I 
shall  send  to  the  negro  quarters  and  ascer 
tain." 

While  Mr.  B'revar  was  absent  dispatch 
ing  messengers  to  make  the  inquiries  sug 
gested,  Captain  Bender  entered  the  room 
and  spoke  privately  with  McLean. 

"Rutherford,"  he  said,  "accompanied  us 
to  this  place  with  six  men,  and  now  I 
learn  neither  he  nor  his  men  have  been  seen 
since  the  first  half  hour  after  our  arrival. 
I  fear  he  may  not  mean  well  toward  us. 

"Why  did  you  bring  him?" 

"Because  it  was  safer  to  do  so  than  to 
leave  him  behind  us." 

"What  harm  do  you  apprehend  from 
him?" 

"I  know  not;  I  am  simply  surprised  at 
his  sudden  departure,  and  can  only  account 
for  it  upon  the  supposition  that  he  means 
us  harm." 

"But  the  only  harm  he  can  do  you  would 
be  to  put  a  regiment  of  Confederate  troops 
on  your  track." 

72 


cMcLean 

"He  would  not  dare  do  that,"  replied 
Bender,  "his  own  neck  would  be  in  jeop 
ardy;  he  would  be  arrested  for  desertion." 

"Well,  be  on  your  guard.  Possibly,  on 
second  thought,  he  concluded  to  keep  out 
of  this  affair." 

"No;  that  is  not  the  cause  of  his  ab 
sence." 

"But  what  can  it  be,  my  friend  ?" 

"I  cannot  answer  that;  I  only  know  his 
going  in  this  way  has  a  suspicious  look." 

The  messengers  had  by  this  time  returned 
with  the  information  that  neither  Miss  Bre- 
var  nor  her  escort  had  been  seen  on  the 
plantation  since  night  fall. 

"Bender,"  said  McLean,  eagerly,  "can  it 
be  possible  this  hell-hound,  Rutherford,  met 
the  young  lady  as  she  was  returning  and 
abducted  her?" 

"I  think  not,  sir,  and  yet  it  is  possible. 
He  has  done  many  bad  things ;  he  would 
not  hesitate  to  do  it,  if  the  thought  once 
entered  his  head  and  jibed  with  his  incli 
nation  ;  at  any  rate,  he  has  been  gone  three 
hours,  and  his  going  is  a  mystery  to  me." 

The  sharp  report  of  a  gun  off  toward  the 
main  road  followed  by  irregular  firing,  and 

73 


cMcLean 

then  by  a  volley,  interrupted  the  conversa 
tion,  and  hastened  the  departure  of  the 
guests  with  a  precipitancy  which  admitted 
of  no  formal  leave  taking.  Bender  was  in 
the  saddle  in  an  instant,  and  putting  spurs 
to  his  horse,  disappeared  under  the  shadow 
of  the  elms.  McLean,  Lindsay  and  North- 
rup  followed  quickly.  In  the  meantime,  the 
rattle  of  guns  continued,  and  when  McLean 
turned  from  the  lawn  to  enter  the  avenue 
which  led  to  the  public  highway,  he  could 
discern,  by  the  blaze  of  carbines,  a  compact 
body  of  cavalry,  confronting  the  somewhat 
scattered  and  apparently  demoralized 
Unionists.  The  latter,  however,  soon  recov 
ering  from  the  surprise  occasioned  by  the 
first  dash  of  the  enemy,  dismounted  and 
sought  the  protection  of  the  trees,  and  the 
concealment  afforded  by  the  shadowy  mar 
gin  of  the  avenue.  From  these  points  of 
vantage  they  poured  into  their  adversaries 
an  irregular,  but  by  no  means  ineffective 
fire.  The  Confederates  surprised,  doubt 
less,  at  finding  so  much  opposition  where 
they  probably  expected  none  at  all,  were 
feeling  their  way  prudently  toward  the  Bre- 
var  mansion,  pouring  out,  as  they  advanced, 

74 


cMcLean 

a  steady  fire,  and  fully  disclosing  their 
number  and  position  by  the  blaze  of  their 
guns. 

Captain  Bender  soon  took  in  the  situa 
tion.  Directing  his  lieutenant  to  ride  along 
one  side  of  the  avenue,  while  he  hurried 
down  the  other,  the  bushwhackers  were  or 
dered  to  move  forward  under  the  shadow 
of  the  trees  as  quickly  as  possible  until  they 
came  within  short  range  of  the  enemy,  then 
deliver  a  well  directed  volley,  and  push  him 
until  he  either  surrendered  or  fled. 

As  if  for  the  purpose  of  covering  this 
movement  and  diverting  the  attention  of 
the  rebels  from  the  danger  which  threat 
ened  them,  McLean  rallied  the  men  who 
had  fallen  to  the  rear  and  formed  them  in 
a  line  of  battle  across  the  head  of  the  av 
enue,  and  in  front  of  the  held  horses.  This 
although  an  independent  movement,  and 
made  without  consultation  with  Bender, 
contributed  greatly  to  the  latter's  success ; 
for  the  rebels,  discovering  a  regular  line 
of  battle  forming  at  some  distance  in  their 
front,  concluded  that  an  effort  was  being 
made  to  rally  the  bushwhackers,  and  for 
the  purpose  of  charging  the  incomplete  line, 

75 


cMcLean 

pushed  boldly  forward,  but  had  proceeded 
only  a  little  way,  when  they  found  them 
selves  between  two  lines  of  blazing  guns. 
Halting,  they  steadied  the  column  for  a  mo 
ment,  then  wheeled  and  abandoned  the  field. 

From  the  wounded  it  was  ascertained 
that  this  company  of  cavalry,  numbering 
less  than  fifty,  had  been  sent  out  to  ascer 
tain  if  possible  what  had  become  of  Captain 
Locke  and  his  men.  From  the  confused 
story  of  the  ferryman  at  the  Yadkin,  the 
rebels  concluded  Locke  had  been  captured, 
and  since  sunset  had  learned  that  McLean, 
with  the  prisoners,  was  but  a  few  hours  in 
advance  of  them.  When,  therefore,  the 
mountaineers  were  first  encountered  in  the 
Brevar  avenue,  they  took  it  for  granted  that 
they  had  simply  collided  with  the  McLean 
party,  and  that  their  expedition  could  not  be 
otherwise  than  successful. 

Even  after  they  had  been  checked  by  the 
first  fire,  the  shadow  of  the  trees  had  so 
concealed  the  bushwhackers  that  the  Con 
federates  thought  McLean's  party  had  sim 
ply  been  increased  by  the  addition  of  a  few 
friends  whom  he  had  picked  up  since  night- 

76 


cMcLean 

fall,  and  if  pushed  vigorously  they  would 
either  surrender  or  seek  safety  in  flight. 

The  Confederates,  who  had  fallen  in  this 
engagement,  were  left  to  the  care  of  the 
Brevars,  while  the  carriage  of  the  family 
was  appropriated  by  Captain  Bender  to  the 
transportation  of  the  few  men  of  his  com 
mand  who  had  been  wounded,  to  their 
camps  on  the  Blue  Ridge. 


77 


VI 

BLOOD  ON  THE  MOON 

IT  was  nearly  midnight  when  McLean, 
Lindsay  and  Northrup  left  the  Brevar 
mansion  to  accompany  the  mountain 
eers  in  their  journey  westward.  Up  to  that 
time,  no  tidings  had  been  received  of  Alice 
Brevar.  The  father,  however,  consoled 
himself  with  the  hope  that,  after  leaving 
McLean,  she  had  re-considered  her  reso 
lution  to  return  home,  and  by  another  road 
proceeded  to  the  place  for  which  she  had 
originally  started.  This  theory,  however, 
was  regarded  with  distrust  by  both  her 
brother  and  McLean.  They  did  not  doubt 
the  young  lady  had  left  them  with  the  in 
tention  of  returning,  and  they  could  con 
ceive  of  no  explanation  of  her  absence  now, 
save  that  of  forcible  detention. 

The  mountaineers,  as  they  entered 
Wilkesboro'  on  their  return,  were  ex 
tremely  boisterous  in  their  demonstrations 
of  joy  over  the  victory  just  achieved,  and 
as  they  went  galloping  through  the  streets, 
startled  and  alarmed  the  sleepy  citizens  by 

78 


cNLcLean 

singing   in   chorus,   a   song   familiar   to  all 
east  Tennessee  soldiers  of  the  Union  army : 

I. 

"My  name  is  Peter  Butternut, 

I   live  in  Tennessee, 
A  man  of  wealth  and  consequence — 

At  least  I  used  to  be. 
I  had  a  thousand  acres  broad, 

An'  darkies  by  the  score  ; 
An'    plenty   filled   my   house   and   barn ; 
What  could  I  ask  for  more? 
Happy  was  the  day,  then,  happy  was  the  day, 
For  happy   Peter  Butternut  of  loyal   Tennessee." 

II. 

"I  had  two  sons  that  went  to  fight, 

An'  thought  that  that  would  do ; 
But  now  I've  got  to  send  two  more 

To  help  the  rebels  through. 
I'm  gwinc  to  try  the  picket  line, 

An'  run  it  if  I   can  ; 
An'  settle  down  with  uncle  Abe, 

An'  be  once  more  a  man. 
Happy  will  be   the  day,  then,   happy  will  be  the 

day, 
For  happy   Peter  Butternut  of  loyal   Tennessee." 

The  Gap  Inn  on  the  following  morning 
was  thronged  with  guests.  The  long  march 
of  the  night  before  had  so  depleted  the 

79 


cKtcLean 

natural  vigor  of  the  mountain  men  that 
they  required  an  extraordinary  amount  of 
rest  and  stimulus.  The  incidents  of  the 
battle  as  it  was  called,  supplied  them  with 
an  inexhaustible  fund  for  conversation.  An 
accurate  collation  of  the  individual  state 
ments  of  those  who  participated  in  the  af 
fair,  disclosed  the  astounding  fact  that 
there  had  been  some  thousands  of  the 
enemy  engaged,  and  that  hundreds  of  them 
had  fallen  dead,  or  disabled,  on  the  field. 
It  was  the  deliberate  judgment  of  Colonel 
Lafayette  Huskins,  the  landlord,  that  there 
had  never  been  so  important  a  battle  in 
west  North  Carolina  since  his  grandfather 
fought  under  General  Sevier  at  King's 
mountain. 

Colonel  Huskins  had  imbibed  his  tenth 
installment  of  applejack  since  daylight,  and 
his  countenance  was,  if  possible,  more 
flabby  and  inflamed  than  usual.  It  must 
not  be  supposed,  however,  that  he  was  in 
the  least  degree  under  the  influence  of 
liquor;  on  the  contrary,  he  was  one  of 
those  who  never  drink  to  excess;  enough 
for  him  was  always  sufficient,  and  he  enter 
tained  the  most  profound  contempt  for 

80 


cMcLean 

weaklings  who  lose  their  equilibrium  by 
the  excessive  indulgence  of  their  appetites. 

After  the  manner  of  the  keepers  of  coun 
try  inns,  he  esteemed  it  a  part  of  his  duty 
to  entertain  his  guests,  as  if  they  were  there 
by  invitation  and  temporarily  the  subjects 
of  his  care  and  bounty.  The  things  paid 
for  were  dispensed  with  an  ostentatious  ex 
hibition  of  hospitable  benevolence  more 
tolerable  in  the  keeper  of  a  charity  hospi 
tal  than  the  head  of  an  establishment  for  the 
entertainment  of  man  and  beast.  The  idea 
that  a  public  house  was  in  any  sense  the 
home  of  the  traveler,  where  he  should  have 
perfect  freedom  to  select  his  own  mode  of 
putting  in  the  time,  restricted  only  by  the 
condition  that  no  violence  should  be  done 
to  public  order  or  private  decency,  had 
never  once  entered  his  head. 

The  day  was  far  from  being  an  agree 
able  one ;  black  clouds  were  resting  heavily 
on  the  ridge,  and  a  cold,  drizzling  rain  was 
falling.  The  bar-room  was  full  of  moun 
tain  men,  and.  as  there  was  no  other  apart 
ment  except  the  kitchen,  where  fires  could 
be  lighted  and  the  desired  warmth  obtained, 
Lindsay  and  Northrnn  were  endeavoring  to 

81 


cMcLean 

find  rest  after  their  fatiguing  journey  in 
this  crowded  room. 

Colonel  Huskins,  standing  behind  the  bar, 
had  just  replenished  the  mugs  of  a  party, 
that,  apparently,  stood  in  as  much  need  of 
moisture  as  the  arid  sands  of  a  desert.  He 
had  been  kept  pretty  busily  employed  since 
early  morning  at  this  work,  but  being  in  an 
oratorical  mood,  had  for  some  hours  im 
proved  his  interims  of  leisure  by  addressing 
his  remarks  to  Lindsay  who  sat  within  ear 
shot,  and  who  could  not  conveniently  get 
farther  away,  although  for  some  time  he 
had  manifested  symptoms  of  impatience,  if 
not  irritation,  at  the  persistent,  but  doubt 
less  well-meant  attentions  of  the  landlord. 

"Yo'  air  from  Ohio,  sah?" 

"Yes,"  responded  Lindsay,  with  an  air  of 
indifference. 

"Great  state,  sah,"  continued  Colonel 
Huskins,  thrusting  his  thumbs  in  the  arm 
holes  of  his  waistcoat;  "but  undeveloped; 
young,  quite  young,  sah.  No'th  Ca'liny 
was  settled  in  1587;  it  was  the  first  to  be 
colonized,  sah.  The  first  white  child  born 
on  the  continent  was  born  in  No'th  Ca'liny, 
gafa." 

82 


cMcLean 

"Where  was  the  first  negro  born?" 

Colonel  Huskins  looked  steadily  at  Lind 
say  for  a  moment,  as  if  to  determine  whether 
the  question  was  asked  with  a  serious  de 
sire  to  obtain  information,  or  a  view  to 
ridicule  and  insult  him.  But  as  the  cap 
tain's  face  seemed  utterly  unconscious  of 
having  violated  any  of  the  proprieties  of 
genteel  life,  the  landlord  replied  stiffly : 

"Dunno,  sah ;  never  took  the  trouble  to 
investigate  that  air  subjec',  sah;  but  the 
daughter  of  Eleanor  Dare,  the  first  white 
child,  was  born  in  Albemarle,  sah." 

"Was  she  a  healthy  child?" 

As  if  possibly  he  did  not  understand  the 
question,  Colonel  Huskins  now  staggered 
from  behind  the  counter,  and  confronting 
Lindsay,  said : 

"What  did  yo'  remark,  sah?" 

"Was  the  child  healthy?" 

The  tone  in  which  the  interrogatory  was 
put  was  quite  serious,  but  the  question  it 
self  suggested  that  possibly  Captain  Lind 
say  was  disposed  to  treat  Colonel  Huskins 
with  less  courtesy  than  is  considered  requi 
site  among  gentlemen  of  honor,  still  the 
landlord  ooyld  detect  no  mark  of  IfeVity  in 

83 


cMcLean 

the  captain's  countenance,  and  so  he  dis 
posed  of  the  matter  by  saying: 

"Really,  sail,  I  can't  say ;  but  what  I  was 
a  goin'  to  remark,  sah,  is  that  No'th  Ca'liny 
is  older  than  Massachusetts." 

"Stand  up  for  your  own  state,  Northrup," 
said  Lindsay,  with  a  yawn,  but  Northrup 
had  dropped  off  into  a  doze,  and  did  not 
hear. 

"Yes,  sah,"  continued  the  colonel,  warm 
ing  up,  "the  bes'  blood  of  England,  Ireland 
an'  Scotland  came  to  No'th  Ca'liny,  sah." 

"Blood,"  exclaimed  Lindsay,  regarding 
his  persecutor  in  a  puzzled  way,  "did  it 
come  in  casks,  or  did  they  bottle  it?" 

The  landlord  being  now  thoroughly  an 
noyed  by  the  captain's  stupidity,  replied 
hotly,  "No,  sah,  it  came  in  the  veins  of  the 
nobility — of  th'  very  fust  families,  sah." 
This  opening  the  way  to  the  colonel's  favor 
ite  theme,  he  proceeded:  "The  Huskinses, 
sah,  was  a  great  fambly  of  England  in  th' 
fourteenth  century,  sah,  but  they  was  among 
th'  fust  to  seek  liberty  amid  th'  solitudes  of 
th'  new  world,  an'  my  gran'father  fit  fur 
independence  under  Gineral  Sevier,  sah." 

"Indeed !" 

84 


cMcLean 

"True  as  my  name  is  Lafayette  Huskins, 
sah,"  continued  the  landlord  triumphantly. 
"He  fit  under  Gineral  Sevier  at  King's 
mountain." 

"Did  he  get  hurt?  Army  men,  some 
times,  I  understand,  tumble  off  baggage 
wagons,  or  stumble  in  their  haste  to  get 
away  from  the  enemy,  and  so  get  bruised. 
I  trust  your  grandfather  escaped  unin 
jured?" 

But  for  Colonel  Huskins'  well  known 
reputation  for  sobriety,  and  the  fact  that  it 
is  a  solemn  and  dangerous  thing  to  dispute 
the  statement  of  a  gentleman  in  regard  to 
his  personal  condition  and  habits,  one  might 
reasonably  conclude  that  on  this  occasion 
he  was  considerably  under  the  influence  of 
apple-jack.  We  may,  without  offense,  how 
ever,  and  without  impeaching  his  own  testi 
mony  as  to  the  universal  propriety  of  his 
conduct,  remark  that  the  colonel,  although 
perfectly  sober,  acted,  under  the  impulse  of 
the  noble  and  generous  blood  now  circulat 
ing  like  liquid  fire  through  his  veins,  very 
much  as  one  in  the  last  stages  of  inebriety. 
There  could  be  no  further  doubt,  he  thought, 
that  Captain  Lindsay  was  disposed  to  treat 

85 


him  discourteously  in  his  own  house,  and 
in  the  presence  of  his  guests.  Nay,  he  had 
intimated  that  the  colonel's  revered  ancestor 
had  not  faced  the  enemy  in  the  forefront  of 
battle.  This  was  not  only  a  reflection  upon 
the  sacred  memory  of  his  grandfather,  but 
it  was  an  insinuation  that  possibly  the  blood 
of  the  Huskinses  was  tainted  with  coward 
ice.  Confronting  the  captain,  therefore, 
with  the  air  of  one  who  would  not  be  trifled 
with,  he  said  with  great  dignity: 

"Do  yo'  mean  to  insult  me,  sah?" 

"Not  at  all,"  replied  the  captain. 

"What  do  yo'  mean?"  thundered  Hus- 
kins. 

"My  friend,"  said  Lindsay  quietly,  "if  my 
conversation  does  not  please  you,  go  away. 
Enlighten  somebody  else.  I  am  not  in  a 
mood  to  talk  or  be  talked  to.  You  have 
already  honored  me  too  much.  I  want  rest 
and  quiet." 

"Sah,  I  am  not  used  to  bein'  addressed 
in  this  manner,"  said  Colonel  Huskins, 
staggering  toward  Lindsay,  as  if  he  had  in 
his  mind  thought  of  doing  him  personal 
violence,  "an'  I'll  not  submit  to  it,  sah." 

86 


cMcLean 

"Then  I  beg  you  to  attend  to  your  own 
business  and  leave  me  alone.  I  am  tired, 
and  you  are  an  infernal  bore." 

"I'll  not  stand  that  from  any  man,  sah. 
It's  not  th'  langwidge  of  a  gen'leman," 
shouted  the  landlord,  as  he  shook  his  fist 
threateningly  in  the  captain's  face. 

Lindsay,  now  thoroughly  incensed,  rose 
from  his  seat  and  with  great  deliberation 
grasped  the  irate  colonel,  and  lifting  him 
from  his  feet,  sent  him  crashing  through 
the  window.  This  done  he  resumed  his 
chair  as  coolly  as  if  pitching  landlords  out 
of  windows  was  one  of  the  ordinary  and 
innocent  pastimes  of  everyday  life. 

The  mountain  men  did  not  apparently 
regard  with  favor  this  unceremonious  and 
precipitous  ejection  of  Colonel  Huskins 
from  his  own  domicile,  and  certainly  when 
the  landlord  crawled  out  of  the  mud  hole 
in  which,  very  fortunately  for  his  own  neck, 
he  had  fallen,  and  re-appeared  at  the  inn 
door  covered  with  dirt  and  dripping  with 
water,  he  was  an  object  for  the  commisera 
tion  and  sympathy  of  all  humane  and  be 
nevolently  disposed  persons. 

87 


cMcLean 

"Blood,"  muttered  the  landlord  from  a 
countenance  blazing  with  wrathful  indigna 
tion,  and  at  the  same  time  greatly  in  need 
of  soap  and  water,  "blood  can  alone  atone 
for  this.  The  Huskinses  never  submitted 
tamely  to  a'  insult,  but  th'  Huskinses  air 
gen'lemen,  an'  they  alus  settle  their  persinal 
difficulties  in  a  gen'lemanly  way,  an'  yo' 
will  find  that  th'  decendant  of  a  man  who  fit 
under  Gineral  Sevier  in  the'  revolutionary 
war  will  not  be  slow  to  vindicate  his  own 
honor.  Excuse  my  temporary  absence, 
gen'lemen." 

Having  threaded  his  way  through  the 
crowd,  Colonel  Huskins  reached  the  door 
way  of  an  inner  room,  and  turning,  bowed 
with  great  politeness  and  disappeared. 

This  affair  was  evidently  regarded  as  the 
precursor  of  a  more  serious  one,  and  ap 
peared  to  have  a  depressing  effect  upon  the 
inmates  of  the  Gap  Inn.  The  boisterous 
conversation  and  laughter  which  had  hither 
to  characterized  their  intercourse,  were  now 
succeeded  by  silence  on  the  part  of  some, 
and  whispered  communications  on  the  part 
of  others.  The  duel  was  generally  thought 
to  be  the  only  means  whereby  those  who 

88 


cMcLean 

professed  to  be  gentlemen  could  obliterate 
stains  put  upon  what  they  called  their  hon 
or.  It  is  true  that  these  combats  sometimes 
resulted  in  a  harmless  exchange  of  shots; 
at  others,  in  the  wounding  or  death  of  one 
or  both  of  the  parties  to  the  controversy; 
but  whatever  the  termination  of  the  duel 
might  be,  and  although  neither  preceded 
nor  followed  by  any  retraction  of  the 
offense,  the  result  was  accepted  as  a  com 
plete  vindication  of  both  the  wronged  and 
the  wrong-doer — of  the  insulted  and  the  in- 
sulter,  and  so,  by  a  simple  attempt  at  mur 
der,  or  by  the  successfurperpetration  of  the 
crime,  the  thief,  gambler,  pimp,  or  what 
not,  was  purified  as  if  by  the  sacrificial  blood 
of  the  atonement,  and  made  a  gentleman 
par  excellence,  fitted  for  association  with 
honorable  men  and  women.  In  other  words, 
according  to  the  logic  of  the  duello,  the 
slandered  man  who  goes  through  the  ordeal 
prescribed,  although  grossly  wronged,  has 
obtained  perfect  satisfaction,  while  the  slan 
derer  who  thus  meets  him  in  combat, 
although  he  has  never  repented  of,  nor  re 
tracted  anything,  has  discharged  his  whole 
duty,  and  is  an  honorable  gentleman. 


cMcLean 

It  has  been  said  in  favor  of  the  duel,  and 
in  justification  of  the  public  sentiment  which 
upholds  it,  that  it  has  a  tendency  to  make 
men  guarded  and  courteous  in  their  inter 
course  with  each  other;  but  it  may  be 
affirmed  on  the  other  hand  that  a  courtesy 
prompted  by  fear  of  being  subjected  to  per 
sonal  punishment,  is  so  tainted  by  cunning 
cowardice  and  hypocrisy  as  to  be  disreput 
able  and  wholly  worthless  to  society.  True 
courtesy  springs  from  a  sincere  desire  to 
deal  equitably  and  generously  with  all,  and 
is  the  natural  impulse  of  the  gentleman. 
Certainly,  no  society  composed  of  well-bred, 
educated  men  and  women,  who  have  respect 
for  justice  and  decency,  can  for  a  moment 
uphold  or  defend  a  method  for  the  adjust 
ment  of  personal  disputes,  which  fails  to 
settle  any  thing;  makes  no  investigation  as 
to  facts,  but  inflicts  its  punishments  indis 
criminately  upon  the  innocent  and  guilty, 
and  finally,  after  a  needless  hazard  of  life, 
awards  to  the  just  and  unjust  an  equal 
meed  of  praise. 

In  hot  blood  men  are  perhaps  excusable 
for  resorting  to  blows,  and  in  rare  cases, 
for  making  use  of  deadly  weapons ;  they  do 

90 


cMcLean 

so  then  without  previous  thought,  or  pre 
meditated  malice;  it  is  the  sudden  outburst 
of  a  quick  temper  smarting  under  what  is 
conceived  to  be  an  insult,  or  an  unkind  and 
possibly  unjust  or  infamous  act.  But  in 
the  duel  the  passions  have  had  abundant 
time  to  cool.  The  preparations  for  the  con 
flict  are  made  slowly  and  deliberately ;  the 
intention  is  murder,  and  in  most  instances 
the  parties  to  the  conflict  are  really  so  un 
evenly  and  unfairly  matched  that  the  result 
of  the  combat  can  be  easily  predicted.  The 
practiced  shot  is  set  against  one  who  has 
possibly  never  fired  a  weapon  in  his  life,  and 
yet  if  the  latter  hesitates  to  play  at  a  game 
of  which  he  knows  nothing,  with  one  who 
knows  all,  that  public  sentiment  which  up 
holds  the  duel,  brands  him  as  a  coward, 
and  banishes  him  from  society.  The  result 
is  that,  whether  in  the  right  or  wrong,  he 
must  stand  up  to  meet  almost  certain  death 
in  order  to  avoid  social  obliteration. 

In  the  middle  ages,  when,  through  ignor 
ance  and  superstition  men  were  led  to  be 
lieve  an  overruling  providence  presided  in 
these  contests,  and  protected  the  innocent, 
there  was  perhaps  some  justification  for 


cNLcLean 

those  engaged  in  them;  but  now  the  duel 
is  a  crime  against  the  civilization  of  the 
century  which  nothing  but  a  perverted  idea 
of  honor,  a  corrupt  public  opinion,  and  a 
radically  rotten  condition  of  public  morals, 
will  tolerate  or  attempt  to  justify. 

Colonel  Lafayette  Huskins  soon  reap 
peared  in  the  office  room  of  the  inn.  He 
had  laid  aside  his  muddied  and  wilted  ap 
parel,  and  now  presented  himself  for  the 
admiration  of  his  guests,  in  that  suit  of 
gorgeous  blue,  with  which,  at  an  earlier 
period  of  his  life,  he  had  hoped  to  adorn 
the  legislative  halls  of  the  nation.  The 
semi-military  coat  made  his  body  appear 
quite  formidable,  while,  the  soap  and  water 
with  which  he  had  cleansed  his  face,  im 
parted  to  it  a  cool,  glossy  and  dignified 
aspect. 

Calling  to  the  bar  a  gentleman  who  had 
not  hitherto  rendered  himself  conscpicuous 
in  the  assembly,  otherwise  than  by  a  willing 
ness  to  drink  whenever  invited  to  do  so,  the 
two  conversed  apart  for  some  minutes  in  an 
undertone,  when  a  piece  of  paper  was  pro 
cured  and  the  friend  proceeded  to  indite  the 
following  letter : 

92 


cMcLean 

Captain  Lindsay,  at  the  Gap  Inn: 

SIR:  —  This  communication  will  be  presented 
to  you  by  Major  Nowell,  who,  as  my  friend  and 
representative,  will  meet  any  person  whom  you 
may  select,  with  a  view  to  making  the  prelim 
inary  arrangements  for  the  settlement  of  the  un 
fortunate  difficulty  which  has  arisen  between  us. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  sir, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

LAFAYETTE  HUSKINS. 

Colonel  Huskins'  message  was  immedia 
tely  delivered  by  Major  Nowell,  a  gentle 
man  who  had  enjoyed  some  educational  ad 
vantages  in  early  life,  but  on  whom  Dame 
Fortune,  of  late,  had  evidently  been  venting 
her  displeasure. 

"What  does  it  mean?"  asked  Lindsay, 
affecting  ignorance. 

"It  means  that  Colonel  Huskins  demands 
satisfaction  for  the  indignity  offered  him, 
sah,"  replied  the  major. 

"Does  he  want  to  fight?"  inquired  Lind 
say,  coolly. 

"He  does,"  responded  the  major,  haught- 
ily. 

"Why  does  he  not  say  so,  then  ?  Why  go 
to  the  trouble  of  having  a  letter  written, 
and  employing  the  services  of  a  friend? 

93 


cMcLean 

He  has  been  ready  enough  to  talk  thus  far, 
why  should  he  write?" 

"It  is  the  recognized  way  —  the  mode  pre 
scribed  by  the  code,  and  sanctioned  by  the 
custom  of  the  country,  sah.    Will  you  refer 
me  to  a  friend  with  whom  I  can  confer?" 
"No,  sir ;    I  will  not." 
"Do  yo'  decline  to  render  satisfaction  to 
Colonel  Huskins,  sah?" 
"What  will  satisfy  him?" 
"Either  an  apology  or  a  meeting." 
"By  a  meeting  you  mean  a  duel  ?" 
"That  would  be  a  natural  inference,  sah." 
"Very  well ;  tell  your  friend  to  select  his 
own  weapons  and  his  own  distance  and  let 
us  get  through  with  the  affair  at  once.    In 
form  me  when  you  are  ready." 

"But  the  usual  mode  —  the  only  one 
recognized  by  gentlemen,  requires  a  friend 
to  act  on  yo'r  behalf,  to  see  that  the  affair 
is  fairly  conducted." 

"I  have  no  friend,"  responded  Lindsay, 
"whom  I  would  care  to  involve  in  a  pro 
ceeding  in  which  none  but  fools  engage.  I 
am  willing  to  oblige  the  landlord  myself, 
but  cannot  consent  to  ask  a  friend  to  par 
ticipate  in  an  affair  that  I  have  good  re&- 


son  to  believe  is  repugnant  to  both  his 
judgment  and  conscience." 

"This  is  informal,  Captain  Lindsay,  and 
not  at  all  in  accordance  with  the  usage 
recognized  as  proper  in  such  cases;  but  I 
will  confer  with  my  principal  on  the  sub 
ject." 

"All  right,  sir;  tell  the  pestiferous  old 
bore  that  whenever  he  is  ready  I  am. 
You  may  say,  also,  that  I  prefer  revolvers 
as  the  weapons,  and  while  you  are  consult 
ing  him  I  will  see  that  mine  are  in  readi 
ness."  Thereupon  the  captain  took  a  six 
shooter  from  his  belt,  and  opening  it  at  the 
breech  investigated  the  cartridges  with 
great  deliberation. 

"Captain  Lindsay,"  said  Northrup  who 
had  overheard  the  conversation,  "are  you 
not  getting  yourself  into  a  good  deal  of  un 
necessary  trouble?" 

"Not  at  all,"  replied  Lindsay  in  an  un 
dertone.  "It's  all  bluff,  Captain  Northrup; 
that  man  Nowell  might  fight  if  he  were 
hard  pushed,  but  the  old  blatherskite  who 
sent  the  challenge  will  not.  Look  at  him 
now  as  he  stands  in  the  corner  while  his 
setond  talks  to  him.  The  btood  has  aban- 

95 


cMcLean 

doned  his  face,  and  gone  done  into  his 
boots." 

The  conference  in  the  corner  having  by 
this>  time  ended,  Major  Nowell  returning  to 
Lindsay,  said : 

"Colonel  Huskins  cannot  consent  to  an 
irregular  meeting;  he  desires  the  affair 
conducted  in  the  method  recognized  by 
gentlemen.  If  anything  were  to  happen 
yo'  in  the  absence  of  a  friend,  it  might  af 
ford  ground  at  least  for  suspicion  that  un 
fair  means  had  been  used,  or  some  advant- 
tage  taken  of  yo',  and  so  a  stigma  be  fas 
tened  upon  the  Colonel's  character  as  a 
gentleman  of  honor,  sah,  which  it  would 
be  impossible  for  him  to  efface." 

"Indeed !"  replied  Lindsay,  with  a  smile, 
"I  am  glad  to  find  Colonel  Huskins  is  a 
gentleman  of  — " 

"Gim  me  yo'r  han',"  interrupted  Huskins 
who  had  come  forward  in  time  to  catch 
Lindsay's  reply;  "that's  manly,  sah.  Th' 
Huskinses  hev  bin  gen'lmen  fur  centuries, 
sah,  an'  when  that  fact  is  admitted  they 
allers  have  the  ginerosity  ter  fergive  an' 
fergit*  |  ' 

96 


cMcLean 

Then  turning  to  the  guests  who  were 
watching  the  proceedings  with  great  inter 
est,  he  said,  with  a  wave  of  the  hand  and 
the  air  of  a  conqueror : 

"Now  that  this  affa'  hev  bin  settled  hon 
orable  an'  to  the  satisfaction  of  all  parties, 
let's  take  a  drink  all  round  at  my  expense, 
gen'lemen  —  at  my  expense." 

Lindsay  was  not  altogether  pleased  with 
the  impression  which  Colonel  Huskins'  lan 
guage  and  manner  conveyed,  but  as  every 
thing  seemed  to  be  amicably  arranged,  he 
had  the  good  sense  to  accept  the  situation 
and  drink  a  social  glass  with  the  landlord. 


97 


VII 
IN  LOVE 

Ilk  THTcLEAN,  who  had  gone  to  the  sum- 
I  V  I  mit  immediately  after  breakfast, 
/  now  entered  the  room  accom 

panied  by  Captain  Bender.  They  had  been 
endeavoring  to  solve  the  mystery  of  Major 
Rutherford's  sudden  departure  from  the 
Brevar  mansion,  but,  as  yet,  had  been  unable 
to  find  any  clue  to  it,  or  to  the  whereabouts 
of  Rutherford  or  the  men  of  his  command. 
The  conduct  of  the  Confederate  renegade 
filled  McLean  with  uneasiness  and  alarm. 
He  could  not  disconnect  him  and  his  sud 
den  nbandonment  of  the  Unionists  from  the 
disappearance  of  Alice  Brevar.  He  knew 
him  well,  and  knew  no  scruple  of  con 
science,  or  question  of  honor,  would  deter 
him  from  the  perpetration  of  any  act  which 
his  ambition,  private  interest  or  passion 
might  suggest.  A  deserter  from  the  rebel 
army,  he  could  not  look  for  either  social 
recognition  or  personal  safety  among  the 
people  of  the  South  who  were  in  sentiment 
favorable  to  the  Confederacy.  With  those 


cMcLean 

who  still  adhered  to  the  Union,  he  might 
indeed  hope  for  protection,  but  not  for  their 
confidence  and  esteem.  He  had  little,  there 
fore,  to  lose  by  any  enterprise  in  which  he 
might  engage,  however  dishonorable  it 
might  be.  The  fear,  amounting  now  almost 
to  absolute  conviction,  which  oppressed  the 
mind  of  McLean  was  that  this  man  had 
seized  Alice  Brevar,  and,  hastening  to  the 
]>lue  Ridge,  or  to  the  great  range  of 
mountains  not  many  miles  beyond,  secreted 
her  with  a  view  to  obtaining  money  in 
ransom,  or  for  purposes  of  an  infinitely 
more  repulsive  character.  As  yet,  however, 
no  information  had  reached  him  fom  Hugh 
l>revar,  and  he  still  entertained  a  faint  hope 
that  the  girl  had  after  all,  adhered  to  her 
original  intention  of  going  to  her  uncle's. 
The  rain  which  had  set  in  during  the 
early  morning,  had  now  ceased.  The  sky 
was  partially  filled  with  floating  clouds, 
whose  shadows  were  chasing  each  other 
over  hills  and  ridges.  The  little  mountain 
stream  that  came  dashing  down  through  the 
gap  was  larger,  noisier,  and  more  turbid 
than  usual.  The  foliage  of  maple  and  oak, 
tinted  by  the  frost  with  all  the  various 

99 


cMcLean 

shades  of  yellow,  red  and  brown,  mingling 
with  the  dark  green  of  the  cedar,  presented 
to  the  eye  a  picture  that,  when  followed  to 
its  remoter  boundaries,  grew  soft  and 
dream-like,  and  finally  became  a  part  of  the 
feathery  clouds  and  the  blue  sky,  sug 
gesting  to  the  imagination  that  it  was  but 
a  short  and  delightful  journey  from  the  Gap 
Inn  to  the  great  worlds  beyond  and  above 
—  but  half  a  summer  day's  journey,  indeed, 
on  which,  however,  hand  in  hand  with  one's 
sweetheart,  one  might  linger  happily  for  a 
century. 

As  Captain  Northrup  stood  in  front  of 
the  Gap  Inn  looking  upon  this  scene,  think 
ing  possibly  of  the  apparent  proximity  of 
earth  and  heaven,  and  of  the  peace  and 
quiet  of  the  far  away  coves  where  the  sun 
light  and  the  shadows  were  playing  hide 
and  seek  together,  the  image  of  the  fair 
Alice  Brevar  somehow  crept  into  the  warp 
and  woof  of  his  meditations,  and  he  thought 
that  with  her  a  home  in  one  of  these  quiet 
valleys,  hemmed  in  by  mountain  walls,  and 
so  shut  out  from  the  perplexities  of  the 
world,  would  be  an  earthly  paradise,  and 
the  realization  of  his  happiest  dreams.  And 


cMcLean 

yet  what  did  he  know  of  her?  But  little, 
indeed ;  and  what  did  she  know  of  him  ? 
Still  less  —  infinitely  less,  in  fact,  for  she 
knew  not  even  his  name. 

But  still  there  is  no  power  on  earth  to 
keep  young  men  from  dreaming  of  fair 
women,  and  if  there  were,  who  would  have 
the  obdurateness  of  heart  to  exert  it?  No, 
since  Adam's  time,  a  ringlet,  a  gentle 
grace  of  brow  or  cheek,  the  delicate  hand, 
or  the  flash  of  a  bright  eye,  has,  in  all 
climes,  launched  simple-minded  man  upon 
a  boundless  sea  of  delightful  reverie,  where 
the  waves  were  moonlight  and  music,  the 
drift  orange  blossoms,  the  bending  sky 
studded  with  rings  and  diamonds,  and  the 
winds  laden  with  the  perfumes  of  Arabia. 
And  here  the  gentle  sailor  floated  on  and 
on,  hoping  to  reach  that  island  of  the  blest 
where  the  years  of  his  life  should  mingle 
happily  with  those  of  the  one  he  loved. 

Really,  Captain  Northrup,  brave  man, 
was  in  an  unfortunate  mood  for  a  soldier. 
A  few  days  ago  he  had  been  impatient  to 
go  north,  to  rejoin  his  regiment,  to  add 
somewhat  to  the  little  glory  he  had  already 
won;  but  now  he  had,  in  some  way,  lost 
mi 


cMcLean 

the  great  desire  to  leave  North  Carolina. 
He  had  been,  in  fact,  recaptured,  and  by 
one,  too,  who  did  not  even  seek  to  hold 
him. 

"Captain  Northrup." 

"Why!    Mr.  McLean,  is  it  you?" 

"You  have  not  been  asleep,  have  yon, 
Captain  ?" 

"Oh,  no." 

"You  appeared  to  be  very  much  absorbed, 
for  I  spoke  to  you  twice  before  you  heard 
me." 

"Did  you,   indeed?" 

"I  promised  to  accompany  Lindsay  and 
yourself  across  the  Blue  Ridge  through 
Watauga  county  and  over  the  Alleghenies 
into  Tennessee,  but  I  have  come  to  tell  you 
I  cannot  do  so." 

"I  regret  to  hear  it,  Mr.  McLean." 

"Not  more  than  I.  You  recollect  the 
young  lady  who  met  us  yesterday  after 
noon,  and  the  conversation  at  Brevar's 
house  respecting  her?" 

"Very  well." 

"I  have,  within  the  last  half  hour,  re 
ceived  a  message  from  her  father  stating 
that  she  did  not  go  to  her  uncle's,  and  that 
102 


cMcLean 

she  is  still  absent;  he  fears  she  has  been 
forcibly  carried  away,  and  her  mother  is 
distracted  with  anxiety  for  the  daughter's 
safety,.  He  begs  me  to  do  all  in  my  power, 
sparing  neither  time  nor  money,  to  rescue 
her  from  what  he  fears  may  be  a  worse 
fate  than  death." 

"This  is  terrible !" 

"Yes ;  and  I  must  bid  you  good  bye,  my 
friend,  for  I  set  out  upon  the  search  at 
once." 

"You  still  think  the  man  whom  you  call 
Rutherford  abducted  her?"  asked  North- 
rup,  as  he  walked  with  McLean  up  the 
mountain  road. 

"I  do  not  doubt  it." 

"Can  I  aid  in  her  recovery?" 

"No;  you  know  nothing  of  the  resorts 
of  these  mountain  people,  and  will  your 
self  need  assistance  to  enable  you  to  get 
safely  through  the  hills  and  ridges  which 
lie  between  this  and  the  camps  of  the  na 
tional  army.  I  have  already  provided  you 
with  a  guide.  In  this  search  for  Ruther 
ford  you  could  render  us  no  service." 

"Do  you  think  her  recovery  probable?" 

"Yes.     Men  must  have  food  and  cannot 


cNLcLean 

rely  entirely  for  subsistence  upon  the  wild 
game  which  may  happen  to  fall  in  their 
way,  so  that  the  Rutherford  party  is  prob 
ably  not  far  from  the  settlements;  they 
must  have  water,  and  so  must  needs  be 
near  a  spring  or  stream ;  they  must  have 
shelter,  also,  for  the  nights  are  cold  and 
the  storms  frequent;  so,  in  all  probability, 
they  have  sought  temporary  lodgement  in 
a  deserted  farm  house  or  hunter's  cairn. 
The  search  will  be  prompt  and  thorough 
Information  of  the  affair  at  Brevar's 
reached  Salisbury  and  Lexington  this  morn" 
ing ;  by  midnight,  and  probably  before,  a 
regiment  of  cavalry  will  be  at  the  Gap  Inn. 
As  soon  as  the  moon  is  fairly  up,  therefore, 
the  men  encamped  on  the  ridge  will  scatter 
for  the  search,  to  re-assemble  finally  at  some 
other  rendezvous,  probably  on  the  moun 
tain  range  separating  North  Carolina  from 
Tennessee.  I  have  seen  Lindsay,  and  in 
the  presence  of  the  negro  who  is  to  serve 
you  as  guide,  given  him  such  information 
respecting  the  country  through  which  you 
are  to  travel  as  I  deemed  of  value.  Your 
guide  is  a  faithful,  intelligent  fellow,  fa 
miliar  with  the  hills,  ridge*  and  mountains, 

104 


cMcLean 

and  the  people  who  inhabit  them,  and  will, 
I  doubt  not,  conduct  you  safely  to  the  Union 
lines.  Now,  my  friend,  good-bye.  There 
is  a  better  time  coming,  when  I  trust  we 
shall  meet  again." 

As  they  shook  hands  at  parting,  the 
young  man  said  with  a  slight  tremor  in 
his  voice : 

"I  should  prefer  to  remain  with  you  and 
aid  in  this  search  for  Miss  Brevar,  for,  to 
tell  you  the  truth,  I  have  become  wonder 
fully  interested  in  her ;  but  you  are  doubt 
less  right  in  supposing  I  could  render  you 
no  assistance ;  so  good-bye.  I  join  you 
heartily  in  the  hope  that  we  shall  meet 
again  in  the  good  time  coming,  and  God 
grant  the  time  may  come  soon." 

Lindsay,  Northrup  and  the  guide  climbed 
the  ridge  during  the  evening  twilight,  and 
were  now  standing  on  the  crest.  The  ra 
vine  by  which  they  were  to  descend  into 
the  valley  lay  shrouded  in  gloom  before 
them.  The  full,  round  moon  was  at  their 
backs,  and  its  mellow  beams  flooded  hill  and 
dale,  revealing  here  and  there  in  the  great 
wilderness  which  lay  far  below  them,  a  cul 
tivated  farm,  with  its  rude  domicile;  a 

105 


cMcLean 

winding  stream,  now  sparkling  like  liquid 
silver,  then  darkening  in  the  shadows,  then 
lost  amid  the  labyrinth  of  hills  and  ridges ; 
and  far  beyond  and  above  them  all,  an 
irregular  and  massive  wall,  whose  turretted 
summit  seemed  to  uphold  the  sky,  and 
come  in  contact  with  the  stars. 

"It's  a  good  night  for  our  journey,"  re 
marked  Lindsay  to  the  guide. 

"Yas,  sah  ;  kotch  a  coon  or  'possum  mebbe 
'fore  mornin',  sah,"  replied  Caesar. 

"Captain  Northrup,"  said  Lindsay. 

But  Northrup  was  deaf  to  the  voice  of  his 
companion,  and  but  half  awake  to  the  mar 
velous  beauty  of  the  scene  before  him. 
Good  man !  he  was  many  miles  at  sea ;  the 
shell  which  bore  him  onward  rocked  gently 
in  the  moonlight ;  the  waves,  as  they  rose 
and  fell,  murmured  a  bewitching  lullaby; 
the  air  was  laden  with  the  aroma  of  opening 
buds;  blossoms  were  drifting  round  him, 
and  somewhere,  just  before  him,  may  be, 
was  that  island  of  the  blest,  and  the  fair 
Alice  standing  on  the  shore  beckoning  him 
to  come. 

"Northrup !"  shouted  Lindsay. 

106 


cMcLean 

No  answer.  Poor  man !  he  is  dreaming 
of  a  cascade  of  golden  ringlets,  the  gleam 
of  a  hazel  eye,  the  flush  of  a  round  cheek, 
the  lithe  and  willowy  form  of  a  romp  on 
horseback,  who  seemed  to  be  galloping  into 
the  very  center  of  a  gorgeous  sunset,  and 
disappearing  amid  its  drapery  of  scarlet, 
and  gold. 

"Captain  Northrup  !"  again  shouted  Lind 
say,  as  he  laid  his  hand  upon  his  comrade's 
shoulder ;  "are  you  deaf,  my  friend  ?" 

"No,  no,  I  hope  not." 

"I  have  been  shouting  to  you  for  an  hour 
— or  less,  and  you  did  not  hear  me." 

"Indeed  ?" 

"I  wanted  to  tell  you  that  Caesar  thinks 
we  shall  catch  a  'possum  to-night." 

"Why,  Caesar,"  said  Northrup  turning  to 
the  guide,  "do  you  really  think  we  shall  be 
so  lucky?" 

"Mebbe,  sah ;  good  night  for  'possum, 
sah." 

And  then  the  three  men  started  forward 
and  downward,  and  were  soon  lost  to  sight 
in  the  deep  shadow  of  the  gap. 


107 


VIII 
VALE  CRUCIS 

CHE  two  officers  and  their  guide  had 
for  hours  traveled  a  clearly  beaten 
pathway  along  the  tortuous  windings 
of  a  ravine,  that  growing  broader  as  they 
descended,  finally  opened  into  a  picturesque 
level  area  of  considerable  extent,  on  which 
three  streams,  uniting,  formed  a  gigantic 
cross  which,  in  the  moonlight,  glistened  like 
molten  silver. 

"This,"  said  Lindsay,  "must  be  Vale 
Crucis." 

Seating  themselves  on  the  grassy  margin 
of  the  larger  stream,  they  opened  their 
haversacks  and  proceeded  to  satisfy  their 
vigorous  appetites,  while  giving  rest  to  their 
weary  limbs. 

"You  have  not  caught  the  'possum  yet, 
Caesar,"  remarked  Lindsay. 

"No,  sab. ;  mought  a  kotched  good  many, 
sah.  Dey  was  a  stirrin'  en  d'  bushes,  sah." 

"Well,  we  shall  need  them  more  in  a  day 
or  two  than  we  do  now,  and  then  we  shall 
catch  and  eat  them." 

108 


c/WcLean 

"Dey  ez  mighty  good  and  fat  now,  sah, 
an'  so  am  de  coon,  but  de  coon  ez  purty  hard 
ter  kotch,  sah." 

"Is  the  raccoon  good  to  eat,  Caesar?" 
asked  Northrup. 

"Nebber  eat  coon  meat,  sah?" 

"Never." 

"Hit's  heap  sight  better'n  shote,  sah." 

"Don't  smile  at  the  captain's  lack  of  in 
formation,  Caesar,"  said  Lindsay.  "He  was 
raised  in  Boston  where  they  never  eat  'pos 
sum,  and  where  a  coon  is  a  curiosity;  be 
gentle  with  him,  my  colored  friend." 

"No,  sah,  Fse  not  gwine  ter  laugh  at  de 
cap'n ;  fer  a  truf  dis  nigger  pities  folks  as 
dunno  w'at  'possum  meat  is,"  replied  Caesar, 
with  a  broad  grin. 

Before  they  had  fairly  finished  their  lunch, 
Caesar's  acute  ear  caught  a  sound  which 
filled  him  with  alarm,  and  pointing  in  the 
direction  from  which  it  came,  he  whispered : 

"Git  flat  on  de  groun'  —  dar  am  de 
sesesh." 

Caesar  was  right.  A  company  of  cavalry 
had  entered  the  ford  some  little  distance 
below,  in  what  might  be  termed  the  body 
of  the  cross,  and  giving  rein  to  their  horses 

109 


cMcLean 

were  permitting  them  to  drink.  The  banks 
of  the  stream  where  they  had  halted  were 
covered  with  trees,  but  the  moon,  now  at 
its  meridian,  revealed  fully  the  horsemen 
who  had  entered  the  creek;  while  those 
still  on  the  margin  were  either  partially 
concealed  or  wholly  hidden  in  the  shadow 
of  the  forest. 

Two  ringing  rifle  shots  were  heard,  and 
as  the  troop  hastily  and  with  much  confu 
sion  abandoned  the  stream,  one  horse  was 
seen  to  rear,  plunge  forward,  and  then  fall 
with  its  rider  into  the  water. 

"Dem  shots  wuz  fired  by  de  bushwhack 
ers,  sah,"  whispered  Caesar;  "we'd  better 
be  gittin'  out  er  hyar  mity  fas',  fo'  ef  de 
sesesh  kotch  us  now  we  ez  gone  coons. 
Dey'll  hang  us  'fore  mornin,  suah." 

Springing  to  his  feet,  Caesar  started  off 
on  a  run  followed  by  the  officers.  Fording 
one  arm  of  the  cross  they  succeeded  in 
reaching  a  clump  of  second-growth  timber, 
where  they  hoped  to  remain  concealed ;  but, 
unfortunately,  the  line  of  escape  thus  hastily 
selected  took  them  near  a  farm  house,  and 
a  watch-dog,  excited  by  their  movements, 
barked  so  loudly  that  the  troop  of  cavalry 


cMcLean 

was  informed,  as  if  by  proclamation,  of 
their  whereabouts. 

Increasing  their  speed  they  changed  their 
course  sharply  under  the  leadership  of  Lind 
say,  and  struck  boldly  across  an  open  field 
toward  a  heavily  wooded  ridge. 

The  confederates,  drawn  to  the  farm 
house  by  the  barking  dog,  now  caught  sight 
of  the  fugitives,  and,  with  a  yell,  started  in 
hot  pursuit ;  but  Lindsay  and  his  compan 
ions  were  well  in  advance  of  them,  and  soon 
gained  the  ridge  in  safety. 

Keeping  as  near  together  as  possible; 
now  whispering  a  word  of  caution,  then 
uttering  a  low  whistle  to  indicate  where 
they  were,  with  relation  to  each  other,  they 
pushed  through  vines  and  brush,  climbed 
over  logs  and  rocks,  until,  becoming  thor 
oughly  exhausted,  they  were  compelled  to 
halt  for  rest.  They  could  still  hear  the 
voices  of  the  enemy  below  them,  and  the 
occasional  report  of  a  gun,  and  hence  re 
sumed  their  flight  as  soon  as  they  recovered 
the  strength  to  do  so.  In  probably  an 
hour's  time,  they  gained  the  summit  of  the 
ridge,  and  threw  themselves  on  the  ground, 
in 


cMcLean 

suffering  with  thirst  and  almost  overcome 
with  weariness. 

From  the  elevation  on  which  they  were, 
they  could  look  down  upon  Vale  Crucis,  a 
picture  of  surpassing  loveliness,  set  in  a 
rugged  frame  of  circling  hills  and  ridges. 
Its  great  cross  lay  sparkling  and  rippling 
in  the  moonlight,  a  thing  of  marvelous 
beauty.  Beyond  the  Vale  and  the  hills,  the 
Blue  Ridge  of  the  Alleghanies  rose  massive 
arid  precipitous ;  its  peaks  and  promontories 
mantled  with  soft  radiance,  and  its  coves 
and  gorges  shrouded  in  impenetrable  gloom. 

"Caesar,"  said  Northrup,  "who  will  re 
ward  you  for  your  labor  on  this  night?" 

"Lo'd,  Massa  Northrup,  dis  nigger  ez 
done  paid  now.  If  de  Lo'd  takes  keer  ob 
de  Yankee  army,  us  black  folks  ez  a  gwinter 
be  free,  sah,  an'  we  ez  ready  to  help  yo'uns 
night  an'  day." 

"Captain  Northrup,"  said  Lindsay,  "let 
us  push  on  to  the  bottom  of  this  ridge; 
the  ravine  may  possibly  afford  us  water." 

They  started  downward,  but  before  going 
far  were  confronted  by  another  ridge  and 
commenced  climbing  again ;  and  so  they 
toiled  slowly  upward  and  onward.  They 

112 


cMcLean 

would  have  lain  down  until  broad  daylight, 
for  they  were  intensely  weary,  but  a  great 
thirst  was  driving  them  forward,  and  so 
they  struggled  toward  the  summit  and 
reached  it  about  sunrise. 

"I  fear  we  shall  find  no  water  here."  said 
Lindsay,  as  he  looked  across  a  wilderness 
of  hills  and  ridges  to  a  solitary  mountain 
not  far  away,  whose  lofty  summit  touched 
the  leaden  sky. 

"Spring  some  whar  bout  hyar,  cap'n," 
said  Caesar.  "Come  hyar  to  hunt  bar  onct ; 
eber  see  a  bar  trap,  sah?" 

"Never,"  replied  Lindsay. 

"Show  yo'  one  purty  soon,  may  be,"  said 
Csesar  as  he  started  off  alone. 

In  a  little  while  Caesar  called,  and  going 
to  him  the  officers  found  he  had  scooped 
out  a  hollow  basin  with  his  hands  at  the 
base  of  a  projecting  rock,  and  in  it  a  pud 
dle  of  muddy  water  was  collecting. 

"Drink,"  said  Lindsay  nodding  to  his 
companion. 

"After  you,"  returned  Northrup. 

Lindsay  lying  flat  on  the  earth  quenched 
his  thirst,  and  rising,  said: 

"It  is  cool  and  moist,  if  not  clear." 

113 


cMcLean 

After  Northrup  had  followed  the  example 
of  his  companion,  they  put  their  haversacks 
on  the  ground  beside  them,  and  ate  their 
morning  meal. 

"Caesar,"  said  Lindsay,  "you  must  catch 
a  'possum  for  us  to-day ;  our  food  will  soon 
be  gone." 

Caesar  expressed  confidence  in  his  ability 
to  supply  them  with  all  the  opossums  needed 
on  their  journey,  and  the  sun  now  falling 
on  them  warmly,  they  lay  down  to  sleep. 

It  was  nearly  noonday  when  they  awoke. 
Caesar  having  been  up  and  active  for  an 
hour  or  more,  had  kindled  a  fire  and  was 
now  roasting  an  opossum.  The  scent  of 
the  fresh  meat  was  very  grateful  to  the 
officers.  When  the  animal  was  nicely  done, 
Caesar  laid  it  on  a  flat  stone  and  presented 
it  to  them.  From  this  and  the  corn  bread, 
of  which  they  still  had  a  meagre  supply,  a 
very  substantial  and  relishable  meal  was  ob 
tained. 

"How  far  are  we  from  the  road  Mr. 
McLean  directed  us  to  follow?"  asked 
Northrup. 

"Dunno,  suahly,  sah." 

"Can  you  guide  us  to  it?" 

"4 


cNLcLean 

''Yasser;  we  go  down  ter  de  bottom  ob 
de  ridge,  and  keep  long  er  little  creek  till 
we  gets  ter  de  open  groun',  sah.  Git  dar 
'fore  night,  sah." 

They  started  in  the  direction  indicated 
by  Caesar,  and  soon  found  themselves  in  a 
narrow  gorge,  through  which,  in  the  rainy 
season,  there  was  evidently  a  very  consider 
able  flow  of  water.  The  bed  of  the  vanished 
stream  was  covered  with  smooth,  flat  rock, 
now  entirely  dry.  Stepping  from  stone  to 
stone,  as  down  a  rough  and  irregular  stair 
way,  they  reached  a  point  where  the  water 
course  turned  sharply  to  the  left,  and  here 
large  trees  had  fallen  length-wise  across 
the  ravine  about  which  a  great  mass  of  drift 
had  gathered.  Climbing  the  almost  perpen 
dicular  bank  of  the  ridge,  they  succeeded 
in  passing  this  obstruction  to  find  others  a 
few  rods  farther  on,  but  little,  if  any,  less 
difficult  to  avoid. 

While  the  general  direction  of  the  gorge 
was  north  and  south,  its  course  often 
changed  abruptly,  as  if  it  were  endeavoring 
to  treat  all  points  of  the  compass  impartially, 
but  as  they  proceeded,  the  space  between  the 
ridges  widened  and  obstacles  to  their  pro- 

115 


cMcLean 

gress  became  fewer.  After  a  time,  they 
found  pools  of  water,  and  moss  on  the  sur 
face  of  the  stones ;  and  then  a  little  rivulet 
feeling  its  way  along  the  lowest  places,  and 
through  the  seams  of  the  rocky  bed,  emptied 
into  shallow  basins,  from  which,  after 
resting  awhile,  it  crept  out  on  the  far 
ther  side,  and  so  continued  its  journey. 
Then  this  rivulet,  uniting  with  others,  made 
a  brook,  which  became  noisy  and  violent 
as  it  dashed  down  little  precipices ;  and 
now  the  rocks  were  slippery,  moss  and  ferns 
rank  and  abundant.  Pretty  soon  the  fugi 
tives  caught  glimpses  of  an  open  space  be 
fore  them,  and  pushing  on  with  better  heart, 
soon  reached  a  little  valley  of  level  wooded 
ground,  probably  ten  acres  all  together. 

Hearing  voices  down  the  valley,  the  of 
ficers  stopped  a  moment  for  consultation. 

"Hunter's  cabin  dar,"  said  Csesar,  in  an 
swer  to  a  look  of  inquiry  from  his  com 
panions.  "May  be  hunters,  may  be  bush 
whackers  a  hidin'  from  de  sesesh." 

"In  either  case,  we  should  have  noth 
ing  to  fear  from  them,"  remarked  North- 
rup. 

n6 


cMcLean 

"Let  us  feel  our  way  cautiously,"  said 
Lindsay.  "Have  your  guns  ready,  but 
stand  while  I  reconnoitre." 

Lindsay  now  stole  forward  quietly,  and 
was  soon  out  of  sight.  After  standing  for 
a  few  moments  Northrup  and  Caesar  started 
to  follow,  and  had  proceeded  but  a  few 
rods,  when  they  saw  Lindsay  returning, 
and  so  halted  until  he  came  to  them. 

"There  are  four  men  near  the  cabin," 
he  said  in  an  undertone ;  "rough-looking 
fellows,  but  whether  armed  or  not,  I  could 
not  ascertain." 

"Probably  loyal  east  Tennesseeans  in  hid 
ing,"  said  Northrup.  "If  so  we  are  in 
luck." 

"I  think  they  are,"  returned  Lindsay, 
"but  let  us  take  no  chances.  See  thaf  your 
carbines  and  pistols  are  in  order,  and  let  us 
get  on  to  them  before  they  have  knowledge 
of  our  coming." 

The  steps  of  the  three  men  were  so  cau 
tiously  chosen  that  no  sound  was  heard  of 
breaking  stick  under  their  feet,  or  rustling 
branch  above  their  heads.  Fortunately, 
those  whom  they  sought  to  surprise  were 
seated  on  a  fallen  tree  near  a  rude  cabin 

117 


McLean  * 

with  their  attention  centered  on  a  pack  of 
greasy  cards. 

"Good  evening,  gentlemen,"  said  Lindsay 
brusquely. 

The  men  sprang  to  their  feet,  and  their 
hands  sought,  as  if  instinctively,  the  han 
dles  of  their  revolvers. 

"Yo'  come  rather  sudden  like,"  exclaimed 
the  taller  man  of  the  group. 

"Yes,"  returned  Lindsay,  "we  have  been 
hunting  and  stumbled  on  you  unexpect 
edly." 

"Yo'  don't  seem  to  have  been  lucky,  sah. 
Shot  guns  and  rifles  air  better  fer  game 
than  carbines." 

"True,"  replied  Lindsay ;  "but  when  men 
can't  choose  their  weapons,  they  must  use 
what  they  can  get." 

While  this  conversation  was  in  progress, 
it  occurred  to  Northrup  that  possibly  the 
number  of  the  strangers  might  be  increased 
somewhat  by  the  appearance  of  others  be 
longing  to  the  party  who  were  still  in  the 
rude  hut;  he,  therefore,  kept  a  vigilant 
eye  in  that  direction. 

It  was  a  rough,  hastily  constructed  shel 
ter,  having  a  puncheon  roof,  but  neither 
118 


cMctean 

windows  nor  doors.  The  interstices  be 
tween  the  logs  afforded  light,  and  in  cold 
weather  entirely  too  much  air  for  comfort 
able  habitation. 

"Wh'ar  do  yo'  uns  live?"  the  taller  man 
inquired,  as  if  still  in  doubt  as  to  the  pur 
pose  and  character  of  the  intruders. 

"In  Watauga.  Do  you  know  where  Vale 
Crucis  is?"  replied  Lindsay,  with  the  un 
concerned  air  of  one  who  had  nothing  to 
conceal. 

"Yes." 

"Well,  not  far  from  there." 

This  conversation  had  attracted  an  in 
mate  of  the  hut  to  an  opening  between  the 
logs,  and  Northrup  catching  a  glimpse  of 
the  face,  was  thrilled  as  if  he  had  been  the 
subject  of  an  electric  shock. 

"Ahr  thar  any  mo'  of  yo'r  party?"  asked 
the  taller  man,  who  evidently  apprehended 
that  the  three  men  before  him  were  simply 
the  advance  guard  of  a  larger  force. 

"Yes !"  shouted  Northrup  bringing  his 
carbine  to  bear  on  the  speaker ;  "there  are 
fifty  others  coming ;  throw  up  your  hands." 

Lindsay's  gun  was  in  poise  instantly. 
He  had  ceased  to  lead,  but,  like  a  good 
119 


cMcLean 

soldier,  he  knew  how  to  follow,  and  felt  as 
sured  Northrup  had  good  reason  for  thus 
suddenly  assuming  command.  The  two 
carbines  covered  the  four  men  in  quick  suc 
cession,  and  their  hands  were  lifted  above 
their  heads. 

"Now,  men,"  continued  Northrup,  as  if 
speaking  to  a  regiment,  "The  sound  of  a 
gun  will  bring  fifty  men  here,  who  have 
been  pursuing  you  for  two  days.  I  have 
no  desire  for  blood  shed;  stand  quietly 
while  Caesar  takes  your  arms,  and  then  you 
may  go.  Resist  or  hestitate,  and  we  shall 
fire  —  choose !" 

"Yo'  hev  us,"  answered  the  leader. 

"Caesar,  disarm  these  men !" 

The  order  was  obeyed,  and  Caesar  was 
by  no  means  slow  when  assured  that  his 
own  life,  and  the  lives  of  his  friends  de 
pended  upon  his  activity. 

"Examine  their  pockets,  Caesar." 

"Nothin'  in  dem,  sah,  'cept  jack  knives 
and  terbacker." 

"March,"  said  Northrup  pointing  to  the 
ridge  which  rose  abruptly  from  the  opposite 
bank  of  the  stream.  "Your  way  of  safety 
is  there,  and  you  cannot  travel  it  too  fast." 


cMcLean 

When  the  four  men  disappeared  in  the 
woods,  Lindsay,  turning  to  his  companion, 
said : 

"That  was  a  bold  stroke,  general;  arc 
you  quite  sure  you  have  not  become  tem 
porarily  insane?  I  stood  by  you,  not  be 
cause  I  understood  you,  but  because  I  knew 
from  the  moment  you  leveled  your  gun  at 
our  departing  friends  we  must  choose  be 
tween  victory  and  death.  Now  tell  me  why 
did  you  do  it?" 

"Follow  me,"  replied  Northrup,  "and  I 
will  do  so." 

Hastening  to  the  hut,  they  were  met  at 
the  entrance  to  it  by  a  young  lady  in  full 
riding  habit,  to  whom  Northrup  said : 

"I  am  Captain  Northrup  —  allow  me  to 
introduce  Captain  Lindsay,  and  then  to 
congratulate  you  on  your  escape." 


121 


IX 

COLONEL  HUSKINS  IMPROVES  AN 
OPPORTUNITY 

m  7TISS  BREVAR  had  passed  two  days 
I  y  I  of  anxiety  and  weariness,  but  ac- 
j  •*"  customed  to  much  outdoor  exer 
cise,  she  had  stood  up  admirably  under  the 
trial.  Her  servants  were  with  her  in  the 
hut  and  were  now  exceedingly  demonstra 
tive  in  their  expressions  of  gladness  over 
the  fortunate  change  which  had  occurred. 

"Captain  Northrup,"  said  Miss  Brevar, 
"you  are  expecting  others?" 

"No ;   we  are  alone,  and  have  been." 

"I  am  mistaken  then,"  she  said  with  a 
look  of  surprise ;  "I  thought  —  I  thought 
I  heard  you  say  there  were  others  coming." 

"That,  Miss  Brevar,"  replied  Northrup 
with  some  embarrassment  of  manner,  "was, 
I  trust,  under  the  circumstances,  a  pardon 
able  misstatement  of  fact.  The  enemy  out 
numbered  us." 

"Is  it  possible  you  started  out  alone  to 
find  me?"  she  asked  looking  into  the  face 
of  the  young  man  who  had  just  defended 

122 


cNLcLean 

himself  against  the  implied  charge  of  hav 
ing  practiced  a  little  deception  in  dealing 
with  her  abductors. 

"No,"  he  replied,  "we  cannot  even  claim 
the  merit  of  that  good  intention.  We  as 
certained,  accidentally,  that  you  had  been 
carried  away,  and  I  knew  you,  for  I  had 
seen  you  once  before,  and  when  I  saw  your 
face  through  the  interstices  of  the  cabin,  I 
knew,  of  course,  you  were  a  prisoner,  and 
that  we  stood  in  the  presence  of  those  who 
forcibly  detained  you." 

"Then  you  were  simply  hunting,  and 
found  me  accidentally?" 

"No;  we  cannot  even  claim  truthfully 
to  be  hunters." 

"Well/'  said  the  girl  with  a  little  laugh, 
that  lighted  up  her  face  like  a  gleam  of  sun 
shine,  "you  will  certainly  not  deny  that  you 
are  very  mysterious?" 

"We  are  officers  of  the  National  army, 
Miss  Brevar,  endeavoring  to  find  our  way 
through  this  apparently  endless  labyrinth  of 
mountains,  hills  and  ridges,  to  the  Union 
lines." 

The  color  receded  from  her  face,  and  an 
expression  of  grave  doubt  fell  upon  it. 
123 


cMcLean 

She  stood  silent,  but  her  look  demanded 
from  Northrup  further  explanation. 

"Captain  Lindsay  and  I  captured  your 
brother  and  others  on  the  Yadkin,  and  were 
with  Mr.  McLean  when  you  met  him  on 
the  evening  of  your  abduction." 

The  girl  was  still  perplexed,  trembling 
and  silent. 

"Have  no  fear,"  said  Northrup,  "we  shall 
accompany  you  to  your  home,  and  are 
ready  to  start  thither  at  once." 

She  hestitated  a  moment  longer,  and  then 
with  a  trembling  voice  said : 

"No,  no,  if  you  are  Federals  you  would 
not  do  that  —  it  would  not  be  safe  for  you 
to  do  it." 

"We  would  not  for  any  light  considera 
tion,"  said  Northrup,  "take  avoidable 
chances  of  recapture;  but  we  cannot  leave 
you  in  this  wilderness  alone." 

The  girl  was  still  in  doubt.  She  could 
not  understand  why  this  man  should  pro 
pose  to  incur  the  risks  of  recapture  and  im 
prisonment  to  help  an  unfortunate  person 
in  whom  he  could  have  no  possible  interest. 
Was  he  sincere?  Had  she  not  fallen  into 
even  worse  hands  than  those  of  Rutherford, 

124 


cMcLean 

who,  seeking  money,  was  negotiating  for 
her  release?  In  her  sore  perplexity,  the 
tears  came,  but  finally,  with  a  voice  broken 
by  a  sob,  she  said : 

"I  will  go  with  you  —  I  —  don't  know 
what  else  to  do ;  I  cannot  remain  in  this 
horrible  place  another  night." 

There  were  four  horses  corralled  near 
the  cabin,  besides  those  of  Miss  B'revar  and 
her  servants.  Lindsay  and  Northrup,  se 
lecting  the  three  best,  and  allowing  the 
other  to  go  at  large,  started  with  the  res 
cued  party  down  the  little  valley,  which,  as 
they  proceeded,  narrowed  to  a  ravine,  and 
afforded  merely  room  for  a  rough,  undu 
lating  path.  In  many  places,  indeed,  the 
ridges  rose  so  abruptly  on  either  hand  that 
they  were  obliged  to  descend  into  the 
stream,  and  make  their  way  slowly  over  the 
loose  rock  and  drift  which  encumbered  its 
bed.  After  a  while,  however,  they  reached 
another  and  larger  strip  of  level  land,  and 
were  able  to  make  more  rapid  progress; 
finally,  as  the  sun  was  setting,  they  entered 
a  mountain  road,  the  right  arm  of  which 
bore  off  in  an  easterly  direction.  Taking 
this  they  urged  their  horses  to  a  trot,  and 

125 


cMcLean 

so  proceeded  on  their  way  toward  the  Blue 
Ridge. 

Lindsay  and  Northrup  were  abreast  at 
the  head  of  the  column.  Miss  Brevar  came 
next,  and  the  three  servants  followed  in 
the  rear.  Very  little  had  been  said.  Lind 
say  was  taciturn,  and  to  any  other  eye  than 
Northrup's  would  have  appeared  sullen  and 
morose;  but  Northrup  was  too  much  ab 
sorbed  in  his  own  delightful  thoughts  to 
see  any  one,  or  know  anything,  except  that 
he  had  in  some  way  become  the  guardian 
of  Miss  Alice  Brevar.  There  were  hun 
dreds  of  men  searching,  and  yet  out  of  all 
he  had  been  chosen  by  fate  to  find  her.  Cer 
tainly  this  could  not  be  blind  fate.  It  was 
doubtless  one  of  the  mysterious  but  not 
infrequent  arrangements  of  an  overruling 
Providence.  Such  unexpected  meetings 
were  occurring  every  hour  in  the  day;  all 
brought  about  by  combinations  of  incidents, 
apparently  accidental,  indeed,  but  evidently 
parts  of  an  intelligent  plan,  and  for  the  ac 
complishment  of  wise  and  beneficent  pur 
poses.  Take  for  illustration  the  girl,  born 
and  reared  in  a  cottage  on  the  banks  of  the 
Rhine,  and  the  rough  farmer  boy  living  in 

126 


cMcLean 

a  rude  hut  in  the  wilds  of  Minnesota;  by 
and  by  they  begin  to  gravitate  toward  each 
other;  sometimes  going  far  indeed  out  of 
the  direct  line,  but  still  drawn  by  a  kindly 
Providence  nearer  and  nearer,  until  they 
finally  meet  and  recognize  the  fact  that  it 
was  a  part  of  the  great  scheme  of  creation 
that  they  should  be  man  and  wife,  and  rear 
up  a  family  in  which  the  blood  of  nations 
long  separated  and  often  at  war  should  at 
last  mingle  in  peace.  And  so  the  great 
cause  was  bringing  distant  peoples  together 
from  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe,  and 
with  every  conceivable  attendant  circum 
stance,  that  they  might  intermarry,  become 
brethren,  and  so  hasten  the  day  when  the 
lion  and  the  lamb  should  lie  down  together, 
and  a  little  child  should  lead  them. 

"Captain  Northrup,"  said  Lindsay. 

But  Northrup  was  too  far  at  sea  to  land 
at  a  moment's  notice.  There  was  his  own 
father,  descended  from  a  passenger  of  the 
Mayflower,  born  and  bred  in  New  England, 
and  his  good  mother  reared  amid  the  gar 
dens  and  flowers  of  suburban  London. 
What  an  infinite  variety  of  little  incidents 
or  apparent  accidents  brought  them  to- 

127 


cMcLean 

gether!  Had  there  been  one  less  in  their 
own  lives,  or  in  those  of  their  great-great- 
grandparents,  centuries  ago,  they  would 
never  have  met.  The  identical  individual 
known  as  Henry  Northrup  would  not  have 
existed ;  but  Providence  had  so  controlled 
the  currents  or  managed  the  drift  that  — 

"Captain  Northrup,"  broke  in  Lindsay 
again,  and  rather  loudly. 

"Sir ;  my  good  friend,"  responded  North 
rup. 

"Are  you  quite  sure  you  are  not  taking 
yourself  back  to  a  dungeon,  and  me  to  the 
gallows  ?" 

"Pardon  me,  Captain  Lindsay,"  returned 
Northrup,  bringing  his  horse  to  a  full  stop. 
"I  did  not  think  of  the  danger  you  would 
necessarily  incur  in  going  back.  You  must 
go  no  further;  take  Caesar  and  make  your 
way  northward  at  once.  Really,  I  have 
been  very  thoughtless." 

"But  what  of  yourself,  Captain  North 
rup?" 

"I  risk  simply  my  liberty  —  a  few  days 
or  months,  more  or  less,  of  imprisonment. 
It  is  not  so  with  you ;  your  life  is  at  stake. 
I  have  endangered  it  too  far  already,"  and 

128 


cMcLean 

then  Northrup,  extending  his  hand  ,said : 
"Leave,  and  at  once.  Good-bye.  I  shall 
find  you  again  when  the  war  is  over.  We 
do  not  part,  I  am  sure,  for  the  last  time." 

It  was  dark,  but  Lindsay  knew  from  the 
choking  in  North  nip's  voice  that  tears  were 
in  his  eyes.  Taking  the  extended  hand  he 
said  : 

"Xo ;  not  for  the  last  time,  and  not  at  all. 
i  can  die.  if  need  be,  for  it  is  appointed 
unto  all  once  to  die,  and  it  matters  little,  I 
take  it,  whether  we  go  soon  or  late;  but  I 
cannot  desert  a  comrade  and  will  not." 

"Xo,  no,  Captain  Lindsay;  I  shall  not 
consent  to  this,"  protested  Northrup. 

"Say  no  more.  1  would  travel  this  road 
now  if  it  led  to  hell ;"  and  Lindsay,  giving 
spur  to  his  horse,  the  company  moved  on. 

The  fair  Alice  began  to  wonder  what 
manner  of  men  these  were  who  had  picked 
up  a  stranger,  and  proposed  to  carry  her 
through  an  enemy's  country  to  her  home. 
They  were  manifesting  traits  of  character 
rather  new  to  her  limited  experience.  She 
felt  that  they  might  be  trusted  and  her  con 
science  suggested,  also,  that  she  was  per 
haps  doing  an  ungenerous  act  in  perrnit- 

I2Q 


cMcLean 

ting  men  who  had  already  hazarded  their 
lives  for  her  safety  to  encounter  further 
perils  in  her  behalf,  and  of  so  grave  a  nature. 
She  knew  very  well  what  an  intense  hatred 
the  Southern  people  entertained  for  men 
like  these,  and  while  there  was  perhaps  no 
feeling  of  bitterness  in  her  own  heart,  she 
would  have  confessed  very  readily  to  a 
strong  prejudice  against  them,  and  a  de 
cided  dislike  to  the  cause  for  which  they 
fought.  But  they  were  evidently  gentle-' 
men  who  had  convictions,  and  the  courage 
to  stand  by  them  ;  they  had,  moreover,  been 
very  kind  to  her,  and  she  would  be  sorry  to 
have  them  get  into  trouble  while  doing  her 
a  service. 

Could  she  protect  them  against  the  en 
mity  of  her  own  neighbors,  or  obtain  their 
release  if  they  were  to  fall  into  the  hands 
of  the  Confederates?  She  feared  not.  Her 
father  and  family  were  influential,  indeed, 
but  the  authorities  would  hardly  consider  a 
kindness  shown  to  a  simple  girl  as  of  suf 
ficient  importance  to  warrant  them  in  giv 
ing  liberty  to  these  Federal  officers.  No, 
no,  that  would  be  asking  too  much.  The 
lives  of  many  men  were  doubtless  risked 

130 


cMcLean 

to  capture  them.  A  kindness  to  one  woman, 
or  even  the  saving  of  the  lives  of  many 
women,  would  he  no  adequate  compensa 
tion  for  their  release  and  return  to  the  Fed 
eral  army. 

While  these  thoughts,  and  many  others 
of  a  kindred  nature,  were  passing  through 
her  mind,  the  moon  had  climbed  to  the  top 
of  the  Blue  Ridge,  and  was  gilding  the 
high  lands.  The  road  had,  for  an  hour  or 
more,  been  exceedingly  rough,  winding 
around  hills  and  quite  frequently  through 
little  gaps  which  led  over  the  ridges.  Pro 
gress  was  necessarily  slow,  and  it  must 
have  been  quite  eight  o'clock'  in  the  eve 
ning,  when,  from  the'  crest  of  a  mountain 
spur,  the  party  looked  down  upon  Yale 
C'rucis.  They  were  traveling  eastward,  and 
the  moon  was  still  too  low  to  present  per 
fectly  all  the  picturesque  loveliness  of  the 
valley  and  its  environment  of  wooded  hills. 
\  glimmer  of  brightness  suggested,  rather 
than  revealed,  the  outline  of  the  cross,  and 
the  open  area  of  level  land  about  it  was 
chequered  with  dim  lights  and  black  shad 
ows.  The  tops  of  the  hills  were  luminous 
indeed,  but  the  sides  and  bases  were  still 

131 


cMcLean 

shrouded  in  darkness.  Beyond  these  and 
above  them  the  summit  of  the  Blue  Ridge 
lay  like  a  fantastically  shaped  cloud  along 
the  horizon,  its  burnished  peaks  apparently 
supported  by  the  air  midway  between  earth 
and  heaven. 

Miss  Brevar,  whose  thoughts  were  still 
dwelling  on  the  risks  which  the  officers 
ran  of  being  recaptured,  and  on  her  own 
inability  to  afford  them  protection,  touched 
her  horse  lightly  and  placed  herself  beside 
Northrup. 

"Gentlemen/'  she  began,  "you  have  been 
very  kind,  but  don't  go  any  further ;  I 
fear  it  may  not  be  safe  for  you.  I  know  the 
road  from  Vale  Crucis  home  very  well." 

''No,"  replied  Northrup,  "we  cannot  leave 
you  in  this  wilderness  alone  at  this  hour  of 
the  night." 

''But  my  servants  are  with  me." 

"They  could  afford  you  no  protection." 

"But,  sir.  you  are  in  an  enemy's  country; 
it  is  not  so  with  me :  the  people  are  my 
friends." 

"I  would  be  glad  if  you  could  induce  my 
friend,  Captain  Lindsay,  to  return,  for  T 

132 


cMcLean 

know  he  hazards  much.  My  own  risks  arc 
small— comparatively,  very  small." 

"IJut  you  have  perhaps  not  considered 
that  1  could  not  protect  you  in  the  least,  or 
secure  vour  release,  if  captured." 

"Xo.  I.  had  not  thought  of  that,"  re 
sponded  Xorthrup  gallantly;  "hut  if  I  really 
thought  you  would  do  so  if  you  could,  it 
would  recompense  me  fully  for  any  service 
I  mav  lie  ahle  to  render  you." 

What  did  he  mean?  If  spoken  lightly, 
H  was  in  mocker}-  of  her  earnestness ;  if 
seriously  meant,  it  suggested  possibilities 
for  which  she  was  now  utterly  unprepared. 
In  either  case,  it  were  better  she  should 
resume  her  old  position  in  the  rear,  and  this 
she  did. 

Who  was  this  young  man,  so  roughly 
clad,  and  yet  with  a  voice,  speech  and  hear 
ing  so  suggestive  of  a  life  of  leisure  and 
refinement?  Why  had  he  noticed  and  re 
membered  her?  and  why  should  he  now  in 
sist  upon  this  dangerous  service?  Why 
should  any  one,  indeed,  and  of  all  the  world, 
why  should  he?  He  was  at  war  with  her 
dearest  friends,  with  the  flag  she  had  been 

133 


cMcLeari 

taught  to  reverence,  with  the  cause  she  be 
lieved  most  just  —  an  alien  and  an  enemy, 
whom  even  her  brother  would  rejoice  to 
see  discomfited  and  in  prison. 

They  had  by  this  time  reached  Vale 
Crucis,  and  passing  over  the  main  branch 
of  the  stream,  or  body  of  the  cross,  had 
entered  a  grove  of  small  timber,  when  they 
were  startled  by  a  command  to  halt.  In 
stantly  fifty  men  sprang  from  the  shadows 
of  the  roadside,  and  enclosed  them  in  a 
circle  of  leveled  guns.  Lindsay  and  North- 
rup  instinctively  grasped  their  weapons,  but 
it  was  apparent  that  any  resistance  they 
might  make  would  lead  to  the  destruction 
of  Miss  Brevar  and  the  servants,  as  well  as 
of  themselves. 

Captain  Lindsay  demanded  to  know  why 
and  by  whom  their  journey  was  interrupted, 
but  instead  of  obtaining  a  reply  he  was 
bluntly  asked : 

"What  lady  have  you  there?" 

He  attempted  to  explain,  but  his  voice 
was  drowned  in  a  volley  of  emphatic  oaths. 

"Who  is  she?"  they  again  shouted. 

"Miss   Rrevar  — " 

134 


cMcLean 

i  iivj  iciiiainder  ui  what  he  said  or  desired 
to  say  was  lost  in  the  great  uproar  which 
followed. 

"We  know  yo' ;  we  hev  bin  lookin'  fer 
yo',"  said  a  voice,  sounding  above  the  con 
fusion  of  tongues;  "let  some  one  carry  the 
lady  to  the  camp  —  now  pull  the  fellows 
from  thar  hosses  —  disarm  them  —  for 
ward  !" 

Lindsay  and  North rup  were  hurried  into 
the  woods  amid  maledictions  and  epithets 
too  profane  and  indecent  to  record.  Pretty 
soon  it  was  suggested  that  the  prisoners  had 
not  only  carried  the  young  girl  off,  but  had 
treated  her  brutally,  and  then  it  was  sug 
gested  that  their  own  wives  and  daughters 
were  unsafe  so  long  as  such  men  were  per 
mitted  to  live.  Finally,  a  proposition  was 
made  to  hang  them,  and  this  being  received 
with  demoniac  shouts  of  approval,  the  mob 
halted  in  an  open  space  and  gathered  about 
the  prisoners  in  a  violent  and  noisy  mass. 

"Take  halters  from  the  hosses,"  cried  a 
voice  which  Lindsay  recognized,  and  look 
ing  about  him  he  discerned  the  landlord  of 
the  Gap  Inn.  Feeling  satisfied  Huskins,  as 
well  as  the  others,  had,  in  the  darkness  and 


cMcLean 

excitement  of  the  occasion  mistaken  them 
for  a  part  of  Rutherford's  gang,  and  that 
it  was  only  necessary  to  undeceive  him  to 
secure  at  least  temporary  safety,  Lindsay 
appealed  boldly  to  the  landlord  to  identify 
and  protect  them. 

"Gentlemen,"  said  he,  in  a  voice  which 
could  be  heard  above  the  din,  "permit  me 
to  tell  you  that  you  are  making  a.  mistake. 
We  are  not  the  men  you  suppose  us  to  be." 

"No,  no,"  retorted  Huskins  with  cruel 
sarcasm ;  "no ;  yo'r  not  th'  men  yo'  aint ; 
yo'  air  out  on  hossback  this  time  o'night 
fo'  recreation.  Hurry  up  th'  halters  ;  they'r 
entirely  too  good  for  this  world,  they  air." 

This  speech  was  greeted  with  laughter, 
yells  and  oaths.  "Yo'  hit  it,  colonel ;  stretch 
'em  up." 

"Men,"  again  shouted  Lindsay,  "there  is 
at  least  one  person  here  who  knows  us.  and 
who  should  know  we  were  simply  conduct 
ing  the  young  lady  to  her  friends.  Colonel 
Lafayette  Huskins  can  bear  witness  to  that, 
and  I  call  upon  him  to  do  so." 

"It's  a  lie,"  retorted  Huskins  as  he  came 
pushing  through  the  crowd  with  a  rope  in 

136 


cMcLean 

his  hand.  "It's  a  lie;  I  kin  bar  witness  to 
no  sich  thing'." 

"String  'em  up,"  shouted  a  score  of  voices. 

The  landlord  of  the  Gap  Inn  seizing-  the 
rope  which  had  by  this  time  been  thrust 
around  Lindsay's  neck,  threw  the  end  over 
a  limb,  and  catching-  it  as  it  fell  gave  a 
violent  jerk :  but  Lindsay  by  an  exertion 
of  strength  prompted  by  the  desperateness 
of  his  situation,  cast  off  the  men  who  had 
dragged  him  forward,  and  grasping  the  rope 
above  his  head  with  both  hands,  relaxed  to 
some  extent  the  strangling  pressure  at  his 
throat. 

"Pull,"  shouted  Huskins,  and  the  weight 
of  a  dozen  men  was  added  to  his  own,  and 
Lindsay  was  lifted  from  his  feet  and  swung 
in  the  air. 

McLean,  to  whom  Miss  Hrevar  had  been 
conducted,  ascertained  from  her  the  particu 
lars  of  her  abduction  by  Rutherford,  her 
release  by  Xorthrup  and  Lindsay,  and  their 
journey  thus  far  toward  her  home.  Sus 
pecting  that  the  yells  which  he  heard  not 
far  away  boded  no  good  to  the  men  who 
had  rendered  him  so  important  a  service  on 

137 


chlcLean 

the  \  adkin,  lie  proceeded  as  rapidly  as  pos 
sible  to  the  scene  of  the  disturbance. 

With  a  curse  upon  the  mob  and  a  quick 
blow  of  his  knife,  he  severed  the  rope  to 
which  Lindsay  was  attached,  and  then  run 
ning  to  the  other  group,  which  for  want  of 
a  leader  had  not  gone  so  far  toward  the 
execution  of  their  threats,  he  released 
Xorthrup  also,  and  proclaimed  to  those 
about  him  that  the  gentlemen  were  the 
friends  and  rescuers  of  Miss  Rrevar,  and 
not  her  enemies  and  abductors. 

\Yhen  Lindsay's  rope  was  cut  he  fell  pros 
trate,  and  although  somewhat  confused, 
still  had  the  sense  to  know  a  friendly  hand 
had  interferred  in  his  behalf,  and  that  the 
moment  of  extreme  peril  had  passed  away. 
Staggering  to  his  feet  he  unlooosed  the  rope 
from  about  his  neck,  cast  it  from  him,  and 
then  gazed  intently  and  searchingly  upon  the 
shadowy  forms  around  him.  They  were 
silent  and  apparently  much  disconcerted ; 
finally  discovering  Huskins,  who  had  seized 
a  gun,  he  sprang  toward  him,  threw  up  the 
muzzle  of  the  weapon  in  time  to  avoid  its 
contents,  caught  the  landlord  by  the  throat 
with  the  grasp  of  a  vise,  and  delivered  in 

138 


ills  iace  a  .succession  oi  blows,  cither  one  oi 
which  was  apparently  sufficient  to  have 
felled  an  ox.  At  this  juncture,  McLean 
came  rushing  back  and  discovering  the  turn 
affairs  had  taken,  exclaimed:  "Hold!  no 
violence.  Captain  Lindsay ;  these  are 
friends." 

Throwing  Huskins  from  him,  as  if  he 
were  a  loose  bundle  of  rags,  Lindsay  turned 
on  McLean:  "Friends!"  he  shouted  indig 
nantly,  "is  this  the  wav  men  are  entertained 
by  their  friends  in  North  Carolina?" 

"But.  Captain,"  persisted  McLean,  "this 
has  been  a  mistake  —  a  grave  mistake." 

"Xo,  no,"  retorted  Lindsay  angrily,  "there 
was  no  mistake.  It  was  a  deliberate  and 
well  nigh  successful  attempt  at  murder. 
That  despicable,  cowardly,  vindictive 
wretch,"  pointing  to  Huskins,  who  had 
managed  to  raise  his  bleeding  face  from  the 
ground  and  assume  a  sitting  posture,  "that 
villain,  at  least,  knew  me,  and  knew  I  had 
no  connection  with  the  abduction  of  Miss 
Erevan" 

"Wretch  !  vindictive  --  cowardly  -  -  vil 
lain,"  muttered  Colonel  Huskins,  as  with 
hands  clasped  about  his  knees,  his  head 


cMcLean 

vibrated  lo  and  fro  like  a  pendulum,  "de 
spicable  —  wretch  !  Great  Gord,  shall  sich 
langwidge  be  addressed  to  a  Huskins  —  to 
one  whose  gran'father  fit  under  Gineral 
Sevier  in  the  revolutionary  war?"  But 
when  McLean  took  Lindsay's  arm  and 
walked  away,  the  tone  of  Colonel  Huskins 
suddenly  changed  from  an  unobtrusive  wail 
of  sorrow  and  deep  humiliation  to  an  ob 
streperous  song  of  denunciation,  defiance 
and  revenge.  "Blood  shall  atone  for  this, 
gen'lcmen ;  mark  what  I  say,  blood!  I'll 
challenge  him.  I'll  hev  satisfaction;  no 
man  shall  address  opprobrious  langwidge  to 
a  Huskins  an'  live.  I'll  hev  his  heart's  blood. 
T  will,  gen'lemen,  so  help  me  Gord !" 


140 


X 
THE  AIR  ICY  AND  WATERS  ROUGH 

IX  explanation  of  the  violent  and  hast)' 
action  of  the  men  who  had  captured 
Lindsay  and  Xorthrnp,  and  so  nearly 
succeeded  in  depriving  them  of  life,  McLean 
said  that  now,  for  nearly  four  years,  in  the 
mountain  regions  of  Xorth  Carolina  and 
Tennessee  the  civil  law  had  been  practically 
abandoned.  The  bitter  and  relentless  feud 
existing  between  those  who  were  loyal  to 
the  old  flag,  and  those  who  had  rallied  un 
der  the  new,  had  resolved  society  into  a  con 
dition  of  lawless  anarchy  ;  trivial  disputes 
were  not  infrequently  settled  with  the  shot 
gun.  pistol  or  bowie-knife,  while  those  sus 
pected  of  grave  offenses  were  summarily 
punished  by  the  rope  or  torch. 

"Many  of  the  men  now  here,"  he  contin 
ued,  "would  be  at  their  homes  if  they  dared 
remain  there ;  but  to  avoid  death,  or  what 
thev  regard  as  still  worse,  conscription,  thev 
congregate  in  the  hills  and  steal  to  their 
families  occasionally  under  cover  of  night. 
Their  wives  and  children  are  much  of  the 

141 


cMcLean 

time,  therefore,  alone  and  defenceless. 
These  are  not  often  disturbed,  it  is  true,  and 
yet  they  may,  at  any  'time,  be  made  the 
victims  of  brutal  men.  It  is  for  this  reason 
that  in  the  minds  of  these  fathers  and  hus 
bands  the  most  heinous  crime  that  can  be 
committed  is  the  very  one  of  which  you 
were  suspected.  The  men  with  me  on  this 
expedition  are  not,  by  any  means,  all  avowed 
unionists ;  some  are  as  nearly  non-committal 
on  the  subject  of  the  war  as  it  is  possible 
for  them  to  be.  They  endeavor  to  so  act 
as  to  incur  the  enmity  of  neither  side,  and 
find  safety,  and  perhaps  some  pecuniary 
profit,  in  adroitly  adjusting  their  political 
convictions  to  accommodate  the  party  tem 
porarily  in  possession  of  the  country.  From 
age  or  some  physical  defect,  cither  feigned 
or  real,  they  are,  or  are  supposed  to  be, 
unfitted  for  military  duty.  By  aiding  in  the 
search  for  Hugh  Brevar's  daughter,  they 
undertsand  very  well  they  are  rendering  a 
service  which  will  commend  them  to  the 
confederates,  and  at  the  same  time  gratify 
me,  and  thus  enable  them  to  fraternize  with 
that  loyal  element  from  which  very  often 
they  have  had  reason  to  apprehend  danger. 

142 


cMcLean 

As  to  those  whom  I  may  term  my  own  fol 
lowers,  they  are  here  because  they  are  safer 
with  the  expedition  than  away  from  it." 

The  three  men  had  now  reached  the  bank 
of  the  larger  stream  which  formed  the  body 
of  the  cross,  at  a  point  where  it  abandoned 
the  little  valley  and  pursued  its  way  through 
a  narrow  and  dark  ravine,  bounded  on 
either  side  by  precipitous  ridges.  Follow 
ing  the  course  of  the  stream  as  nearly  as 
the  uneven  and  rugged  character  of  the 
ground  would  admit,  they  soon  descended 
into  a  small,  semi-circular  level  area,  or 
cove,  covered  with  grass,  which,  at  a  former 
period,  had  evidently  been  a  basin  or  reser 
voir  of  the  creek.  Passing  by  many  camp 
fires,  McLean  conducted  his  friends  to  a 
little  niche  in  the  further  side  of  this  open 
space,  where  they  found  Miss  Brevar. 

Her  servants,  assisted  bv  Q-esar.  were 
busily  engaged  about  a  fire  cooking  meats, 
potatoes  and  corn  bread,  and  making  such 
other  preparations  for  the  evening  meal  as 
were  possible  under  the  circumstances. 
Lindsay  and  Xorthrup  had  fasted  since 
twelve  o'clock,  and  were  ready  to  respond 
eagerly  and  cheerfully  to  any  proposition 

14* 


cMcLean 

which  involved  the  indulgence  of  their  appe 
tites. 

Miss  Brevar,  who  knew  nothing  of  what 
had  transpired  during  the  last  half  hour, 
greeted  the  officers  cordially,  and  expressed 
her  gratification  at  their  having  fallen  into 
such  friendly  hands. 

"As  for  me,"  she  continued,  with  a  per 
ceptible  twinkle  in  her  brown  eyes,  and  look 
ing  toward  McLean,  "1  am  unfortunate :  I 
have  again  been  captured  by  the  enemy. 
What  uncle  Davy  proposes  to  do  with  me,  I 
don't  know,  but  he  will  be  very  severe,  I 
am  quite  sure." 

"Yes.  you  torn-boy,"  retorted  McLean, 
good  humoredly,  "I'll  cure  you  of  this  habit 
of  riding  about  the  country  like  a  fox 
hunter,  you  may  be  sure  of  that." 

"What  fearful  punishment  do  you  pro 
pose,  uncle?" 

"I  think  I  shall  have  you  taken  north, 
where  all  captured  rebels  are  sent,  to  be 
held  until  the  war  ends." 

"That  would  be  terrible." 

"Captain  Northrup,"  continued  McLean, 
with  mock  solemnity,  "would  you  under 
take  the  task  of  conducting  this  rebel  pris- 

144 


cMcLean 

oner  to  the  lines  of  the  national  army,  and 
turning  her  over  to  the  authorities  .J" 

"The  task  would  be  an  agreeable  one, 
certainly,"  returned  Xorthrup.  with  a  smile, 
"if  the  prisoner  were  to  promise  not  to 
make  resistance :  but  in  the  absence  of  such 
a  pledge,  I  should  not  have  the  courage  to 
undertake  it." 

\\  as  there  a  perceptible  flush  in  the  face 
of  the  fair  .Mice,  or  did  the  golden  locks 
of  her  shapely  head  tinge,  by  reflection,  the 
clear  texture  of  brow  and  cheek r  Maybe, 
indeed,  and  this  is  the  more  reasonable  con 
jecture,  the  shadowy  flame  was  simply  the 
reflex  glow  of  the  camp  fire. 

"I    should    resist,"    she    said,    coolly. 

"Then,"  replied  Northrup  seriously,  "the 
task  would  be  an  impossible  one.'' 

The  dinner  being  now  ready  they  par- 
look  of  it  in  that  primitive  fashion,  which 
we  have  reason  to  conclude  was  followed  by 
the  first  families  of  the  world  during  the 
period  immediately  preceding  the  advent  of 
Tubal  Cain,  and  yet  all  the  silver  and  gold 
that  ever  adorned  the  table  of  an  epicure 
could  not  have  rendered  the  nicely  roasted 
venison  more  delicious,  nor  the  corn-bread 

145 


cMctean 

and  potatoes  more  relishable.  Health  and 
exercise  had  transformed  a  simple  and 
homely  meal  into  a  rich  and  luxurious 
feast. 

"Alice,"  said  McLean,  "I  desire  to  put 
you  east  of  the  Blue  Ridge  before  sun 
rise  ;  we  shall,  therefore,  leave  this  place  at 
midnight.  You  will  have  three  hours  for 
rest;  let  Diana  arrange  your  blankets  so 
you  can  get  a  little  sleep." 

"Thank  you,  uncle ;  I  feel  a  little  tired, 
but  do  not  care  to  sleep  just  now." 

"Will  you  remain  here  until  morning. 
Captain  Lindsay?"  asked  McLean. 

"I  think  not,"  replied  Lindsay,  "we  must 
make  up  for  lost  time.  The  moon  will  be  at 
its  meridian  by  twelve  o'clock,  and  afford 
sufficient  light  to  enable  us  to  pick  our  way 
over  hills  and  ridges.  I  think,  if  Captain 
Northrup  is  ready,  we  shall  start  when  you 
do." 

Northrup  made  no  response.  The  young 
man  was  once  more  at  sea,  but  now  the 
air  was  icy,  the  waters  rough,  and  the  pros 
pect  gloomy. 

He  had  risked  his  life  for  this  girl  —  a 
matter  of  no  great  consequence,  perhaps, 
146 


cMcLeari 

bnl  it  was  the  most  important  sacrifice  In- 
had  to  offer,  and  yet  it  had  not  impressed 
her  greatly,  perhaps  not  at  all.  She  had 
manifested  some  slight  feeling,  it  is  true, 
when  she  urged  them  on  the  score  of  their 
own  personal  safety  to  turn  back  and  leave 
her  to  complete  the  journey  alone.  She  had 
even  expressed  her  thanks  to  them  with 
gentle  warmth,  hut  she  would  doubtless 
have  offered  the  same  tribute  to  any  ser 
vant  who  had  rendered  her  a  service.  It 
seemed  to  him  he  had  known  her  for  an 
age ;  certainly,  it  seemed  a  long  time  since 
she  had  become  the  all-absorbing  subject  of 
liis  thoughts.  But  was  he  not  a  fool  to 
entertain  a  scheme  which  all  present  and 
prospective  circumstances  forbade?  She 
was  here ;  his  duty  called  him  else 
where  ;  his  personal  safety  demanded  his 
immediate  departure.  He  had  no  time, 
therefore,  to  make  the  slow  approaches  to 
her  good  favor  which  etiquette  and  perhaps 
decency  required ;  but  if  he  had,  what 
chance  of  success  was  there?  He  was 
counted  among  the  enemies  of  what  she  had 
been  educated  to  regard  as  her  country : 
the  members  of  her  family  believed,  doubt- 


cMcLean 

lets,  this  country \s  existence  and  their  own 
personal  honor  depended  upon  the  defeat 
and  humiliation  of  the  army  in  which  he 
fought.  He  would  soon  be  separated  from 
her  by  mountain  ranges.  These,  however, 
were  slight  obstructions  when  compared 
with  the  feuds,  animosities  and  prejudices 
which  divided  the  people  of  the  two  sec 
tions.  To  his  friends,  disloyalty  was  the 
synonym  of  all  that  was  wicked  and  detes 
table  in  the  individual.  To  her's  loyalty  to 
the  Union  was  regarded  as  the  embodiment 
of  cowardice,  roguery  and  oppression. 
What  hope,  therefore,  could  he  have  of 
winning  her?  She  had,  or  would  have, 
doubtless,  a  score  of  suitors,  whose  laurels 
had  been  won  in  fighting  for  a  cause  she 
esteemed  just;  the  chances  would  be 
against  him,  indeed,  in  an  equal  contest, 
where  he  could  meet  her  in  safety  and  on 
fair  terms ;  but  now  the  struggle  was  hope 
less  —  he  would  be  a  fool  no  longer. 

"Captain  Lindsay,"  he  said,  springing  to 
his  feet,  "I  am  ready  to  start  now ;  let  us 
make  a  good  long  journey  before  sunrise." 

Lindsay,  sensible  man,  was  sound  asleep, 
and  had  for  the  hour  forgotten  the  fearful 

148 


cMcLean 

experiences  of  the  evening,  and  was  dream 
ing  doubtless  of  the  pleasant  northern 
home,  \vith  its  encompassing  fields  of  fruit 
and  grain,  where  all  of  his  earlier  and  most 
of  his  later  years  had  flowed  away  like  the 
waters  of  a  peaceful  river. 

"Captain  Xorthrup,"  said  McLean, 
looking  up  in  surprise,  "why  this  sudden 
change  —  this  haste?  Let  Lindsay  sleep 
and  get  some  rest  yourself.  You  will  make 
all  the  more  progress  for  it." 

"I  fear  Captain  Xorthrup  regrets  the 
time  wasted  in  my  service."  remarked  Miss 
I'revar,  as  if  she  were,  in  some  way.  per 
haps  to  blame  for  the  delay. 

"Xot  in  the  least ;"  replied  Xorthrup. 
and  then  pausing  a  moment,  as  if  all  had 
not  been  said  ordinary  politeness  required, 
he  looked  into  the  brown  eyes  of  the  girl, 
and  forgetting  the  resolution  of  a  moment 
ago,  added,  "A  lifetime  could  be  happilv 
spent  in  such  a  service/' 

If,  indeed,  there  be  an  almost  fathom 
less  abyss  in  the  physical  and  moral  struc 
ture  of  man  popularly  termed  the  bottom 
of  his  heart,  these  few  simple  words  must 
have  come  from  the  very  nethermost  re- 

140 


cMcLean 

cesses  of  that  remote  region,  and  they  came 
too,  with  such  a  quiet  and  solemn  vehe 
mence  that  they  temporarily  knocked  the 
fair  Alice  quite  off  her  poise,  and  even 
staggered  the  equilibrium  of  the  hard- 
headed  and  unsusceptible  McLean. 

The  camp  fire  had  been  replenished  by 
Gesar  and  his  colored  co-laborers,  and  the 
flame  which  blazed  up  cheerfully  was  mir 
rored  for  the  second  time  to-night  in  the 
clear  complexion  of  the  girl. 

Her  mental  vision,  always  acute,  began 
at  last  to  discover  in  this  young  man  the 
glimmer  of  a  sentiment  which  has,  from 
time  immemorial,  created  little  private  revo 
lutions,  individual  secessions,  and  personal 
confederacies,  and  then,  finally,  if  circum 
stances  w>ere  favorable,  resolved,  amid  tears 
of  joy,  storms  of  God-bless-you's,  cascades 
of  wine,  and  wildernesses  of  flowers,  into 
one  glorious  and  indivisible  union. 

"Miss  Brevar,"  continued  Northrup,  de 
terminedly,  "I  desire  to  speak  to  you  and 
must  speak  now ;  it  is  my  only  opportu 
nity,  and  one  which,  a  moment  ago,  I  had 
abandoned  as  hopeless ;  even  now,  desper 
ate  as  I  am,  I  would  not  avail  myself  of  it, 

150 


cMcLean 

were  not  a  friend  and  representative  of 
your  father  present,  in  the  person  of  Mr. 
McLean,  to  hear  what  J  have  to  say." 

"Sir,"  interrupted  Miss  B'revar  uneasily, 
"do  not  say  more." 

"\Ye  separate  to-night,"  he  continued  un 
mindful  of  her  protest ;  "I  may  not  see 
yon  again  for  years  —  possibly  never ; 
surely  the  expression  of  that  natural  senti 
ment  which  God  has  implanted  in  the  heart 
of  all,  and  which  has  found  voice  at  the  lips 
of  honest  men  and  women  since  the  days  of 
Adam,  should  not  wound  your  feelings,  and 
can  not  compromise  your  honor.  I  speak- 
now,  because  I  must  do  so,  if  I  speak  at  all. 
Tf  you  bid  me  not  to  hope,  I  shall  regret 
my  failure,  but  not  my  effort  to  succeed." 

The  color  receded  temporarily  from  Miss 
1'revar's  face,  and  she  trembled  slightly, 
but  she  rose  from  her  seat,  and  standing 
before  him,  face  to  face,  said  modestly,  but 
firmly  : 

"I  am  sorry  you  have  said  so  much ;    T 
-  T  —  do  not   know  you,   sir  —  that   is  to 
say,  T  only  know  you  are  a  brave  —gentle 
man  —  you   have  been  very  kind  to  me  -- 
but    ou  are  a  straner." 


cMcLean 

She  was  about  to  resume  her  seat,  when, 
under  the  inspiration  of  a  new  thought,  she 
hesitated  ,then  turned  toward  him  again, 
and  said : 

"Come,  let  us  walk  down  to  the  brook 
together;  you  must  not  go  away  feeling 
any  unkindness  for  one  whose  life  you 
have  perhaps  saved." 

The  fair  Alice  gathered  up  her  long  rid 
ing  dress,  and  the  two  passed  from  the 
shadow  of  the  forest  covered  ridge  into  the 
moonlit  area,  and  so  down  to  the  stream, 
which  rippled  across  one  end  of  the  little 
cove. 

She  had  not  sought  her  companion's  con 
fidence,  and  possibly  had  hardly  surmised 
the  existence  of  more  than  a  sentiment  of 
friendship;  if,  indeed,  more  was  suspected, 
she  had  hoped  for  his  sake  she  might  be 
mistaken  ;  but  now  that  the  manly  avowal 
had  been  made,  like  a  womanly  woman, 
whose  brain  was  cool,  and  whose  heart  was 
honest,  she  felt  that  there  could  be  no  harm 
in  according  him  the  gentle  treatment  due 
from  a  sister  to  a  brother,  or  from  friend 
to  friend.  Tt  may  be  thought  girlish  mod 
esty,  or  what  may  be  known  as  a  sense  of 


cMcLean 

•propriety,  would  have  sealed  the  lips  of  a 
well-bred  and  pure-hearted  young  woman, 
under  such  circumstances,  but  this  is  prob 
ably  an  error. 

Nothing  short  of  perverted  instincts  and 
defective  education  could  make  a  woman 
shame-faced  or  silent  at  such  a  time,  and 
induce  her  to  treat  her  admirer  as  if  he  had 
sought  to  insult  or  dishonor  her.  To  a 
superior  girl  like  Alice  Brevar,  whose 
quickness  of  thought,  independence  of 
spirit  and  perfect  self-possession,  enabled 
her  to  respond  as  promptly  to  the  impulses 
of  a  generous  nature,  as  the  well-bred  steed 
1o  the  spur  of  its  rider;  nothing  could  be 
more  natural  than  an  effort  to  banish  from 
.Vorthrup's  mind,  if  possible,  all  sense  of 
the  grief  and  mortification  which  may  have 
resulted  from  his  failure.  Silence  and  an 
ger,  real  or  feigned,  would  under  the  cir 
cumstances,  have  indicated  a  moral  and 
mental  condition  neither  good  to  possess 
nor  pleasant  to  contemplate. 

The   woman,   who,  if  unaffected  by  pas 
sion  herself,  cannot  meet  her  lover  frankly 
and   fairly,   and  entertain   him   kindly,   must 
certainl     be  deficient  in  mental  resource,  if 


cMcLean 

not  in  good  sense ;  for  at  such  a  period  he 
is  overwhelmed  by  defeat,  while  she  is  flat 
tered  and  strengthened  by  being  die  recipi 
ent  of  a  great  tribute  to  her  personal 
charms,  and  hence,  for  the  time,  infinitely 
his  superior. 


i54 


XI 
THE  BUSHWHACKER  AT  HOME 

LINDSAY  and  Northrup  had  followed 
secluded  roads  and  winding  paths 
for  weeks,  traveling  mainly  by 
night  and  seeking  rest  and  shelter  by  day 
in  the  jungles  of  the  forest. 

They  had  crossed  the  great  mountain 
range  separating  XTorth  Carolina  from  Ten 
nessee,  and  were  now  struggling  among 
the  foot-hills  of  its  western  slope.  They 
had  avoided,  as  far  as  possible,  the  haunts 
of  man,  preferring  tbc  dangerous  prox 
imity  of  wild  beasts  to  that  of  their  own 
kind.  Their  progress  had  been  very  slow, 
and  their  clothing  so  mutilated  by  brush 
and  briars,  that  it  afforded  little  protection 
against  the  severer  autumn  winds. 

Caesar  was  still  with  them  :  indeed  with 
out  the  ever  ready  help  of  this  cheerful  and 
faithful  servant,  the  pangs  of  hunger  would 
long  since  have  been  added  to  their  other 
discomforts  and  sufferings. 

His  sight  was  keen,  and  the  mountains 
familiar  to  him ;  he  could  find,  beneath 

155 


cMcLean 

leaves  or  brush,  or  laurel  thicket,  the  spring 
that  would  have  remained  hidden  from  less 
experienced  eyes.  In  early  evening,  as 
they  were  starting  on  their  journey,  or  in 
the  early  morning,  as  worn  and  tired  they 
were  seeking  a  place  of  rest  and  safety, 
his  ear  was  quick  to  detect  the  rustle  among 
the  fallen  leaves  which  denoted  the  step  of 
the  slow  and  stealthy  opossum,  or  the  bolder 
and  more  rapid  movements  of  the  raccoon ; 
and  whenever  he  failed  at  such  times  to  ob 
tain  the  food  necessary  for  the  party's  sub 
sistence,  he  would,  with  his  gun.  steal  off 
during  the  day,  while  his  white  companions 
were  sleeping,  and  always  have  something 
ready  when  they  awoke  to  satisfy  their  ap 
petites.  He  was  uncomplaining  and  inde 
fatigable  in  his  devotion  to  them,  never 
thinking  of  his  own  wants,  but  ever  as 
mindful  of  theirs  as  a  parent  of  the  slight 
est  demands  of  a  child.  His  practiced  eye 
never  failed  to  discover  the  dim  outline  of 
the  path  they  sought  to  follow,  even  when 
it  was  indistinguishable  to  others. 

The  rain  was  now  pouring  down  in  tor 
rents  ;  it  began  to  fall  at  noon,  and  feeling 
assured  a  night  of  intense  darkness  was  be- 

156 


cMcLean 

lure  tlieni,  the  fugitives  had  sought  I  lie 
public  highway  early  in  the  evening.  The 
moon  would  not  rise  until  after  midnight, 
hut  the  sky  was  so  black  they  entertained 
little  hope  that  it  would  even  then  afford 
them  any  assistance.  The  stars,  often  con 
sulted  by  the  officers  to  verify  Caesar's 
knowledge  of  the  country,  and  assure  them 
selves  the}'  were  going  in  the  right  direc 
tion,  were  of  course  completely  hidden,  and 
so,  benumbed  and  shivering,  they  stumbled 
on  through  the  darkness,  in  a  blind  uncer 
tain  way.  often  colliding  with  the  stumps 
and  stones  which  obstructed  a  rough  road 
that  could  be  discerned  only  by  its  being  a 
shade  less  intensely  black  than  the  dense 
forest  through  which  it  ran. 

The  wind  had  been  rising  since  night 
fall,  and  soon  the  atmosphere  grew  colder; 
the  rain  turned  to  snow  and  sleet,  and  these 
were  dashed  against  them  with  an  angry 
violence  which  searched  out  evcrv  rent  in 
their  tattered  garments,  and  penetrated  with 
icy  chilliness  to  the  very  marrow  of  their 
hones.  Their  shoes  had  been  hanging  to 
gether  by  shreds  for  days,  but  the  soles, 

'57 


McLean 

very  thin  indeed,  had  thus  far  afforded 
some  protection  to  their  feet.  To-night, 
however,  Northrup  had  lost  one  of  his  alto 
gether,  and  although  his  foot  was  hruised 
and  bleeding,  he  had  traveled  some  hours 
without  adding  to  the  discomfort  of  his 
friends  by  referring  to  his  misfortune.  But 
finally,  the  foot  gave  him  such  intense  pain 
he  was  obliged  to  ask  his  companions  to 
stop  for  a  time  that  he  might  relieve  it. 

''Why,  Cap'n  Northrup,"  exclaimed  Cae 
sar,  "has  yo'  los'  yo'  shoe,  sah?" 

"Yes,  Caesar,  some  time  ago." 

Caesar  immediately  removed  from  his 
own  foot,  a  rough  covering  of  untanned 
skin,  and  offering  it  to  Northrup,  said  : 

"H'yar,  Cap'n  Northrup,  put  dis  shoe  on, 
sah ;  not  berry  good  shoe,  but  heap  better'n 
none,  sah." 

"No,  no,  Caesar,"  replied  Northrup,  in  a 
tone  which  indicated  that  he  was  touched 
by  the  poor  fellow's  generosity,  "I  cannot 
do  that,  Caesar." 

"Why,  Massa  Northrup,"  returned  Cae 
sar,  in  surprise,  "yo'  can  git  dat  shoe  on, 
sah;  hit's  big  miff,  suahly,  sah." 

158 


cMcLean 

"You  are  very  kind,  Caesar,"  said  North- 
rup  cheerfully,  "but  I  cannot  take  it;  your 
foot  would  soon  be  as  badly  torn  as  mine." 

"Oh  no,  sah ;  dis  nigga's  foot  mighty 
tough,  sah ;  go  bar'foot  mos'  de  time,  sah. 
Xebber  war'  shoes  'cept  in  winter,  en  not 
berry  of'n  den,  sah.  Put  de  shoe  on,  Massa 
Xorthrup ;  it  kin'  o'  pinches  my  foot  any 
way,  sah.  an'  I'd  like  to  hab  vo'  tote  hit 
for  me,  sah," 

That  Caesar  did  not  adhere  to  the  truth 
in  this  argument  was  very  evident,  for  the 
shoe  he  held  out  for  Northrup's  acceptance, 
had  been  constructed  with  too  great  a  dis 
regard  for  economy  in  the  use  of  materials, 
to  cramp  the  foot  of  anybody.  It  was  wide 
and  long  and  soft,  with  the  hair  of  the  ani 
mal  turned  inside  to  make  it  warm  and 
comfortable  to  the  wearer;  but  if  the  end 
ever  justified  the  means,  surely  it  did  in 
this  instance.  Certainly  Caesar's  compan 
ions  thought  none  the  less  of  him  for  this 
barefaced,  yet  unsuccessful  attempt  to  de 
ceive. 

"No,  Qesar,"  said  Northrup,  firmly,  "you 
must  tote  you  own  shoe." 

159 


cMcLean 

At  Lindsay's  suggestion,  Northrup  now 
tore  off  the  flap  of  his  coat,  and  in  this  care 
fully  wrapped  the  disabled  foot,  using  a 
tough  leather  string  which  Qesar  supplied, 
to  bind  the  covering  to  its  place.  This  done, 
they  resumed  their  journey,  for  in  such  a 
storm  it  would  have  been  idle  to  seek  even 
the  partial  shelter  of  the  woods. 

They  were  now  chilled  to  the  bone,  and 
without  the  little  warmth  afforded  by  ex 
ercise,  must  have  perished.  They  moved 
haltingly  and  slowly,  and  after  a  time  came 
to  a  mountain  stream,  ordinarily  containing 
little  water,  but  no\v  so  swollen  by  the  rain 
that  in  the  darkness  it  appeared  like  a  broad 
and  rapid  river. 

Sensible  the  flood  could  not  make  them 
more  thoroughly  wet  than  they  were,  and 
conjecturing  that  the  stream  might,  after 
all,  be  a  less  formidable  obstruction  to  their 
progress  than  it  seemed.  Lindsay  waded 
into  it  cautiously,  but  soon  discovered  the 
water  was  so  deep  and  the  current  so  swift 
that  it  would  be  utterly  impossible  to  ford 
it. 

The  fugitives  now  turned  to  each  other 
for  consultation. 

160 


cMctcan 

"Caesar,"  said  Lindsay,  "what  stream  is 
this?" 

"Branch  dat  puts  inter  de  Nolechucky 
ribber  sah." 

"Any  house,  barn,  shed,  or  shelter  of  any 
kind  near?" 

"De  nearest,  sah,  ez  a  house  on  nudder 
road,  dat  crosses  dis  one  short  way  back ; 
half  mile  ter  de  cross  road,  sah,  an'  den 
half  mile  ferder  on  dat  ter  de  lef  an'  yer 
git  ter  de  house,  sah." 

"Let  us  go,"  said-^Lindsay ;  "it  is  death 
to  remain  here ;  it  can  certainly  be  no  worse 
there." 

They  turned  and  retraced  their  steps  for 
a  distance,  which,  measured  by  their  impa- 
patience  and  discomfort,  seemed  a  league. 
Then  rinding  the  cross  road,  they  followed 
it  until  they  finally  came  to  what  appeared 
to  be  a  break  or  opening  in  the  forest.  A 
dog  began  to  bark  fiercely,  and  going  in  the 
direction  of  the  sound  they  came  at  last  to 
a  log  cabin. 

While  Caesar  endeavored  to  pacify  the 
watch-dog,  Lindsay  climbed  the  worm 
fence,  which  separated  the  house  from  the 
field  over  which  they  had  traveled  since 

161 


cMcLean 

leaving  the  public  highway,  and  rapped 
loudly  for  admission.  This  failing  to 
arouse  the  inmates,  he  resumed  the  knock 
ing  with  such  violence  it  seemed  as  if  the 
door  must  give  away  before  him.  Finally, 
they  heard  some  one  moving  within,  and  a 
thin,  piping  voice,  evidently  that  of  a 
woman,  cried : 

"Who's  thar?" 

"Three  travelers  who  have  lost  their  way, 
and  are  perishing  in  the  storm,"  replied 
Lindsay. 

"Go  on  ter  next  house  half  mile  furder," 
returned  the  voice ;  "I'm  a  lone  woman  an' 
can't  let  yer  in." 

"For  God's  sake,"  cried  Lindsay,  whose 
jaws  chattered  in  the  bitter  cold,  so  he  could 
not  articulate  distinctly,  "open  the  door ;  I 
tell  you  we  are  perishing." 

"Go  on,"  replied  the  voice ;  "don't  trouble 
a.  poor  woman  this  time  o'  night." 

"Madam,"  said  Lindsay,  "it  is  a  matter 
of  life  or  death  with  us ;  we  shall  not,  there 
fore,  stand  longer  on  ceremony.  If  you  do 
not  open  the  door  instantly  we  shall  break 
it  down." 


cMcLean 

"Who  clar'  talk  about  hreakin'  into  my 
house,"  demanded  a  rough  voice ;  "leave 
hyar,  or  I'll  put  a  bullet  through  the  do'." 

"Shoot  and  be  d — d,"  retorted  Lindsay, 
now  thoroughly  out  of  patience.  ''Open  the 
door !" 

He  heard  the  hammer  of  a  gun  click  with 
in,  and  then  the  same  voice  shouted  back  at 
him : 

"Gor  way;  if  yer  try  ter  git  inter  this 
house  ter-night.  thar'll  be  a  funeral  ter-mor- 
ro\v." 

Lindsay  made  no  reply,  but  stepping  to 
the  fence  took  a  heavy  rail  from  it,  and 
placing  it  upon  his  shoulders  sprang  for 
ward,  striking  this  extemporized  battering 
ram  against  the  door  with  such  violence  as 
to  drive  it  from  its  fastenings,  and  send  it 
to  the  middle  of  the  cabin. 

"Sir,"  said  he  rushing  into  the  room  with 
a  revolver  in  his  hand,  followed  by  North- 
rup  and  Cresar,  "if  I  am  to  die  to-night,  I 
prefer  a  bullet :  it  furnishes  a  warmer, 
quicker  and  altogether  more  comfortable 
mode  of  exit  than  that  offered  by  the  storm." 

His  opponent  stood  with  rifle  in  hand,  but 
the  sudden  crash  of  the  door  and  appear- 

163 


cMcLean 

ance  of  the  intruders  had  evidently  discon 
certed  him.  Lindsay  continued : 

"Is  it  peace  or  war?" 

"Peace,"  returned  the  man,  doggedly. 

"Then  put  down  the  gun,  and  put  wood 
on  the  fire,  for  I  tell  you  man  we  are  nearly 
frozen." 

"Sah,"  said  the  east  Tennesseean  apolo 
getically,  "these  are  dangerous  times,  when 
it  isn't  safe  to  open  yo'  do'  at  night  to  every 
strolling  band  that  comes  along." 

"True,"  replied  Lindsay,  "but  it  is  safer 
to-night  to  admit  us  to  your  roof  and  fire 
side,  than  to  attempt  to  reject  us." 

The  coals  on  the  hearth  were  soon  un 
covered,  and  the  great  fire-place  filled  with 
logs,  interspersed  with  pine  knots. 

When  the  host  had  completed  his  prepar 
ation  of  the  fire,  he  placed  a  wooden  bench 
before  it,  and  invited  his  guests  to  be  seated. 
Then,  as  the  dry  knots  began  to  crackle  and 
blaze,  and  the  room  lighted  up,  he  looked, 
in  an  inquisitive,  but  not  unkindly  way,  at 
Lindsay,  and  asked : 

"Didn't  I  see  yo'  on  the  Blue  Ridge  ?" 

"Possibly,"  replied  Lindsay;  "I  was 
there." 

164 


cMcLean 

"Yo'r  escaped  union  officers?" 

"Yes." 

"Sally,"  continued  the  Tennesseean,  turn 
ing  to  the  bed  which  occupied  one  corner  of 
the  room,  "git  up,  these  air  frien's/' 

Then  going  to  a  cupboard  standing 
against  the  wall  near  the  chimney,  he  pro 
duced  a  brown  stone  jug  of  apple  jack,  and 
placing  it  before  his  guests,  invited  them  to 
help  themselves. 

This  mildly  strengthening  stimulant, 
which  in  the  mountain  regions  of  east  Ten 
nessee  and  west  North  Carolina  is  the  uni 
versal  panacea  for  all  ills,  both  present  and 
prospective,  had  a  most  marvelously  reju 
venating  effect  on  Csesar ;  his  face  became 
quite  radiant  with  good  humor  and  shone 
with  all  the  resplendent  gloss  of  highly  pol 
ished  ebony ;  while  his  feet  were  with  great 
difficulty  restrained  by  an  imperious  will 
from  carrying  him  off  into  a  double  shuffle. 

If  it  were  indeed  true,  as  Csesar  had  as 
serted  an  hour  or  two  ago,  that  the  capaci 
ous  shoes  which  spread  out  beneath  him 
like  the  bases  of  great  gravy  bowls,  im 
pinged  upon  the  space  naturally  belonging 
to  his  feet  and  so  rendered  them  a  painful 

165 


cMcLean 

and  unnecessary  encumbrance,  he  had  now 
become  utterly  unconscious  of  it.  In  fact, 
the  shoes,  if  it  be  no  disrespect  to  such  huge 
receptacles  to  refer  to  them  by  so  common 
a  title,  seemed  to  be  instinct  with  healthful 
life,  and  rose  and  fell  with  a  measured  clap 
as  if  they  might  be  keeping  time  to  some 
plantation  melody  now  piping  in  Caesar's 
heart. 

In  justice  to  Caesar's  reputation  for  ver 
acity,  however,  it  should  be  said  that  if  by 
any  possibility  he  was  mistaken  a  few  hours 
ago,  in  supposing  the  shoes  did  pinch  him, 
and  that  he  could  not,  therefore,  be  perfectly 
happy  unless  Captain  Northrup  would  be 
kind  enough  to  "tote''  them  for  him,  it  can, 
on  the  other  hand,  be  affirmed  to  Caesar's 
credit,  that  he  was  absolutely  correct  when 
he  asserted  the  Captain  could  get  them  on ; 
for  to  use  his  own  language  they  were  "big 
miff,  suahly." 

The  good  wife,  a  spare,  delicate  woman, 
who  had  evidently  had  no  holiday  time  of 
it  thus  far  in  life,  soon  set  before  the  guests 
a  substantial  lunch,  consisting  of  corn-bread 
and  pork,  to  which  they  did  ample  justice. 
After  the  meal  was  ended,  she  cleared  off 

166 


cNLcLean 

the  table  with  silent  cheerfulness  and  re 
turned  to  her  bed. 

The  four  men,  in  no  wise  inclined  to 
sleep,  now  gathered  before  the  fire  to  talk 
over  the  situation.  The  Tennesseean  a  tall, 
ra \vboned,  athletic  man,  who  either  chewed 
or  smoked  tobacco  incessantly,  was  just  now 
puffing  away  at  a  pipe,  the  stem  of  which 
was  a  small  branch  of  elder-wood,  while 
the  bowl  was  simply  the  base  of  a  corn  cob, 
hollowed  out. 

Qesar,  with  an  eye  to  business,  had  im 
mediately  after  supper  obtained  a  raccoon 
skin,  which,  with  many  others,  was  pinned 
to  the  walls  of  the  cabin,  and  was  now  busily 
engaged,  with  a  knife,  in  lieu  of  a  needle, 
and  leather  strings  for  thread,  in  fashion 
ing  a  shoe  for  Captain  Xorthrup. 

"How  far  is  it  from  here  to  Greenville?" 
asked  Lindsay. 

The  Tennesseean  informed  them  it  was 
twenty  miles  by  the  direct  road,  but  fully 
twice  as  far  by  any  of  the  mountain  paths 
it  \vould  be  safe  for  them  to  travel.  The 
substance  of  the  information  obtained  from 
tix.ir  host,  as  to  the  situation  in  their  im 
mediate  vicinity,  combined  with  that  subse- 

167 


^McLean 

quently  gathered,  was  simply  this :  The 
rebel  General  Hood  was  then  (November, 
1864),  menacing  middle  Tennessee,  while 
Breckinridge,  with  a  view  to  creating  a 
diversion  in  his  favor,  was  concentrating 
troops  between  Jonesboro'  and  Knoxville, 
for  the  purpose,  apparently,  of  invading 
Kentucky  by  way  of  Cumberland  Gap.  A 
part  of  the  forces  now  being  thus  consoli 
dated,  had,  for  the  last  few  weeks,  been 
somewhat  scattered  and  actively  engaged 
in  scouring  the  country  in  quest  of  bands 
of  federal  sympathizers.  It  was  their  recent 
presence  and  activity  in  the  counties  of  Ten 
nessee  bordering  on  North  Carolina  which 
had  induced  the  loyal  Tennesseeans,  whom 
Lindsay  and  North rup  first  met  at  Brevar's, 
to  seek  safety  by  crossing  the  mountain 
range  and  rendezvousing  temporarily  on  the 
Bine  Ridge. 

"Yo'  mus'  hug  the  mountains,"  said  the 
Tennesseean,  "till  yo'  git  by  Knoxville ; 
then  a'mos'  any  one  can  guide  yo'  to  the 
federal  camps." 

"Do  you  see  the  confederates  often?" 
asked  Lindsay. 

168 


cMcLean 

''Yas ;  when  yo'  fust  banged  at  th'  do',  I 
was  suah  a  squad  of  confederates  that 
couldn't  git  across  th'  creek  had  come  hyar, 
an'  I  was  gittin'  ready  to  run;  but  then  I 
made  up  my  min'  they  was  may  be  not 
soldiers  after  all,  an'  I  would  chance  'em 
rather 'n  out  in  the  storm ;  and,  finally, 
yo'uns  come  sudden  like,  an'  I  couldn't  help 
myself." 

Cccsar.  having  now  nearly  finished  the 
shoe,  put  it  on  the  captain's  foot,  while  he 
made  the  necessary  measurements  to  enable 
him  to  fasten  it  securely  about  the  ankle; 
but  before  this  service  had  been  fairly  com 
pleted,  the  fierce  barking  of  the  faithful 
watch-dog  instantly  silenced  the  inmates  of 
t'.ie  cabin,  and  made  every  ear  attentive  to 
catch  the  slightest  sound  from  without. 

The  elements  were  still  holding  high  car 
nival  ;  from  afar  came  the  muffled  roar  of 
the  storm  in  conflict  with  hills  and  ridges ; 
nearer,  the  rattle  and  creak  of  swaying  trees 
in  the  valley ;  still  nearer,  the  shriek  and 
wail  of  the  wind  around  gables  and  corners. 
It  was  a  fearful  night,  but  less  terrible, 
Lindsay  thought,  than  the  gloom  of  the  dun 
geon,  and  even  cheerful  when  contrasted 

160 


with  the  horrors  of  the  gallows.  He,  there 
fore,  glanced  about  him  eagerly  to  ascertain 
what  opportunities  there  were  for  escape, 
in  case  the  alarm  sounded  by  the  sentinal  of 
the  household  should  indicate  the  approach 
of  enemies. 

There  was,  so  far  as  he  could  observe, 
but  one  place  of  exit,  the  door  by  which 
they  entered.  The  openings  for  the  admis 
sion  of  light  were  too  small  to  admit  of  the 
passage  of  a  full  grown  man.  The  house 
was,  however,  well  calculated  for  defense ; 
the  rough,  unhewn  logs  of  which  it  was 
constructed  were  bullet  proof,  and  it  would 
be  neither  difficult  nor  dangerous  for  four 
resolute  men  to  hold  the  door  against  a 
much  greater  number  of  assailants. 

While  these  thoughts  were  passing 
through  his  mind,  a  sound  was  heard  above 
the  tempest,  which  sent  a  thrill  of  anxiety 
and  alarm  through  every  heart.  It  was  that 
made  by  a  troop  of  cavalry  as  it  came  gal 
loping  across  the  field  which  lay  between 
the  house  and  the  public  road.  To  open  the 
door  now  and  attempt  to  escape,  would 
send  a  gleam  of  light  into  the  darkness, 
thst  would  not  only  betray  their  presence, 

170 


cMcLean 

but  in  all  probability  elicit  a  volley  from  the 
enemy's  guns,  and  certainly  lead  to  pursuit, 
and  possibly  to  capture.  Lindsay  and 
Northrup,  therefore,  braced  up  the  hinge- 
less  door  by  piling  against  it  whatever  mov 
able  furniture  there  was,  while  the  host 
carefully  covered  the  smouldering  fire  with 
ushes,  and  thus  darkened  the  room. 


171 


XII 
CAPTAIN  LINDSAY  LEAVES  HIS  CARD 

CHE  horsemen  having  now  reached  the 
fence  separating  the  house  from  the 
field,  dismounted  and  gathering  nois 
ily  about  the  door,  demanded  admission  by 
beating  it,  and  calling  loudly  upon  those  in 
side  to  open  at  once.  Lindsay  and  Northrup 
drew  their  revolvers,  but  the  Tennesseean 
putting  a  finger  to  his  lip  to  enjoin  silence, 
whispered : 

"Too  many ;  if  we  beat  'em  orf  thar'll 
likely  be  mo'.  It  won't  do  to  fight ;  they'll 
burn  the  house." 

Then  turning  to  his  wife  he  continued : 
"Keep  'em  out  as  long  as  yo'  can." 

A  thundering  blow  now  came  against  the 
panel  and  a  voice  cried,  angrily : 

"Open,  confound  yo' !  Air  yo'  goin'  to 
let  us  freeze?" 

"Who's  thar?"  said  the  woman. 

"A  detachment  of  No'th  Ca'liny  cavalry ; 
open  the  do'  at  once,  or  we  shall  break  it 
down." 

172 


cMcLean 

"I'm  a  lone  woman;  please  don't  bother 
me  this  time  o'night ;  thar  is  a  nuther  house 
half  mile  furder  down  the  road." 

This  appeal  was  greeted  with  a  yell,  and 
a  voice  added :  "If  you're  a  lone  woman 
thar  s  th'  mo'  room  for  us ;  let  us  in,  an' 
we'll  keep  yo'  company  —  quick  or  down 
goes  the  do'." 

While  this  dialogue  was  progressing  the 
Tennesseean  removed  a  board  from  the  floor 
of  the  cabin,  and  by  a  motion  directed  his 
guests  to  descend  into  the  dark  space  thus 
revealed.  They  disappeared  in  an  instant, 
and  being  quickly  followed  by  him,  the  wife 
closed  the  aperture  above  them. 

The  cellar,  so-called,  into  which  they  had 
thus  been  introduced,  was  simply  an  irregu 
lar  pit,  where  vegetables  were  stored  during 
the  winter  months.  The  crevices  in  the 
floor  admitted  sufficient  light  to  enable  the 
four  men  to  see  indistinctly,  while  they 
could  hear  perfectly  all  that  might  be  said 
in  the  room  above. 

"Well,  I'll  be  blest  if  I  endure  this  any 
longer,"  said  a  voice  on  the  outside.  A 
succession  of  heavy  thumps  against  the  door 

173 


cMcLean 

now  threatened  its  destruction,  when  the 
woman  called  out,  "I'll  undo  the  do'." 

A  moment  later  the  room  was  filled  with 
men  who  crowded  and  jostled  each  other 
about  the  hearth. 

"Tom,"  said  a  voice,  "start  up  the  fire; 
we  may  as  well  be  comfortable  while  we 
stay." 

"It's  too  infernal  bad  for  the  ho'ses," 
said  another,  evidently  the  voice  of  a  kind- 
hearted  fellow  who  loved  his  beast,  and 
could  not  rest  happily  while  it  suffered. 

"Yes,  but  it  would  be  no  better  if  we 
stood  in  the  storm  with  them,"  remarked 
another,  evidently  the  voice  of  one  who 
liked  his  own  comfort  far  more  than  that 
of  his  horse. 

"Madam,  have  yo'  no  shed  or  shelter 
where  th'  ho'ses  can  stand?"  said  one  who 
spoke  authoritatively. 

"A  pore  one,  sah,"  replied  the  woman. 

"Where  is  it?" 

"Back  of  th'  house,  sah." 

"Tom,"  said  the  officer  commanding  the 
detachment,  "yo'  get  this  fire  to  roaring 
while  we  put  the  ho'ses  under  shelter. 

174 


cMcLean 

Conic,  boys,  let  us  see  to  the  poor  beasts, 
and  then  look  out  for  ourselves." 

There  was  a  rush  for  the  cabin  door,  the 
fence  was  thrown  down,  the  horses  led  to 
the  rear  and  placed  under  a  long,  low  shed 
covered  with  straw.  The  woman  was  cor 
rect  in  saying  it  was  a  poor  one,  but  it 
afforded  partial  shelter  from  the  storm,  and 
was  far  better  than  none  at  all. 

When  the  party  returned  to  the  cabin,  the 
fire,  stimulated  and  expedited  by  pine  knots, 
had  broken  into  a  cheerful  blaze.  The  offi 
cer  said  to  the  woman  kindly: 

"Go  to  bed,  madam,  we  shall  disturb  yo' 
as  little  as  possible" ;  and  then  as  if  a  new 
thought  occurred  to  him,  he  continued : 
"Where  is  your  husband?" 

"In  the  army,  sah." 

"What  army?" 

"Gineral  Breckenridge's,  sah." 

"Glad  to  hear  it.  I  wish  all  east  Tennes- 
seeans  were  there.  We  shall  be  with  him 
to-morrow,  if  the  creek  can  be  forded  in  the 
morning." 

"Is  there  gwine  ter  be  a  battle,  sah?"  said 
the  woman  with  apparent  anxiety  in  her 
tone. 

175 


cNicLean 

f 

"There  has  been  one,  madam.  General 
Breckinridge  whipped  the  Yanks  at  Morris- 
town  the  other  day,  and  is  driving  them  pel- 
mell  back  to  Knoxville." 

Then,  turning  to  his  men,  he  continued : 

"Four  hours  to  rest;  make  yourselves 
comfortable,  boys,  while  you  can ;  as  soon 
as  it  is  fairly  light  we  shall  be  off,  and  make 
up  by  hard  riding  for  time  lost." 

"No  tidings  from  Captain  Locke  when  yo' 
left  Iredell,  Frank?" 

"None,  Captain  Lenoir." 

"He  went  north,  doubtless;  that  was  a 
strange  capture." 

"Very,"  returned  young  Brevar,  who  took 
the  defensive  at  once ;  "and  yet  as  far  as 
I  can  see,  Captain  Locke  was  in  no  wise  to 
blame.  We  were  breathing  our  horses  after 
a  hard  ride,  and  resting  ourselves  on  the  east 
bank  of  the  Yadkin,  where  we  had  no  more 
reason  to  suspect  the  presence  of  an  enemy 
than  in  the  streets  of  Salisbury  or  Lexing 
ton." 

"That  Lindsay  is  an  obstinate,  desperate 
devil,"  said  Lenoir.  "He  was  one  of  those 
who  tunneled  out  of  Libby." 

"Indeed !" 

176 


cMcLean 

"He  had  made  six  unsuccessful  attempts 
to  escape,"  continued  Lenoir,  "before  he 
finally  succeeded.  For  over  two  months  he 
was  confined  in  the  dungeon,  then  trans 
ferred  to  Salisbury  and  put  on  the  chain 
gang,  but  he  would  not  work ;  finally,  in  re 
taliation  for  a  confederate  officer  who  was 
arrested  as  a  spy  and  executed  by  the  Yan 
kees,  he  was  being  conveyed  to  Richmond 
to  be  hung,  when  he  and  another  prisoner 
leaped  from  the  train  and  made  good  their 
escape." 

"Where  did  you  learn  this?"  asked 
Brevar. 

"From  an  officer  at  the  prison  in  Salis 
bury." 

"Well,  the  strangest  thing  connected  with 
the  whole  matter,"  said  Brevar,  "is  the  fact 
that  he  and  his  companion  not  only  cap 
tured  me,  but  rescued  my  sister." 

"The  deuce  you  say  ;  why  how  was  that?" 
exclaimed  the  good  looking  captain,  open 
ing  his  eyes  in  astonishment.  "I  heard,  of 
course,  of  Miss  Alice's  abduction  and  of  her 
rescue,  but  I  supposed  McLean  was  en 
titled  to  the  credit  of  the  latter." 

177 


"Not  at  all.  It  seems  these  two  Yankee 
officers  were  stealing  over  the  hills  of  Wa- 
tauga,  when  they  came  suddenly  on  Ruther 
ford  and  three  or  four  of  his  gang,  dis 
armed  them,  took  their  horses,  conducted 
Alice  back  some  fifteen  miles  to  Vale  Crucis, 
where  they  put  her  in  charge  of  Davy 
McLean." 

"It  was  a  gallant  thing  for  the  Yanks  to 
do,"  said  Captain  Lenoir,  thoughtfully. 

"Yes,  but  stranger  still  is  the  fact  that 
they  intended  to  conduct  her  to  Iredell,  and 
would  doubtless  have  done  so  had  they  not 
accidentally  hit  upon  McLean's  party.'' 

"Why,  d — n  the  Yanks,  I  am  afraid  there 
is  something  human  about  them  after  all. 
What  sort  of  men  did  Miss  Alice  say  they 
were?" 

"As  gentle  and  courteous  in  their  treat 
ment  of  her  as  if  they  had  been  her  broth 
ers,"  returned  Brevar ;  "and  when,  out  of 
regard  for  their  personal  safety,  she  urged 
them  to  turn  back,  one  of  them  replied, 
'No,  we  cannot  abandon  you  at  night  in  this 
wilderness'." 

"The  deuce  you  say ;  why  d — n  'em  I 
don't  believe  they  are  Yanks." 

178 


cMcLean 

Captain  Lenoir  and  young  Brevar 
watched  and  slept  by  turns,  while  the  sol 
diers,  stretched  on  the  floor  with  blankets 
for  pillows,  were  lost  in  profound  sleep,  or 
reveling  in  pleasant  dreams.  They  had 
started  the  morning  before  from  Boone  to 
join  General  Breckenridge  in  the  valley  of 
the  French  Broad,  or  that  of  the  Holston, 
but  had  been  delayed  first  by  swollen 
streams,  then  by  the  darkness  and  storm, 
and,  finally,  by  an  impassable  creek,  until 
they  were  now  fully  twenty  miles  away  from 
the  place  they  had  expected  to  reach  six 
hours  before.  They  had,  however,  done 
their  best,  and  like  experienced  soldiers, 
saved  their  horses  as  much  as  possible,  so 
they  might  be  reasonably  fresh  when  called 
upon  to  perform  the  more  important  and 
dangerous  duties  incident  to  the  service. 

Lenoir  was  probably  twenty-six  years  of 
age ;  a  handsome  man.  of  medium  stature, 
whose  dark  eyes,  black  flowing  hair,  long 
beard,  and  pointed  moustache,  suggested  the 
dashing  soldier  and  expert  horseman  that 
he  was.  Proud  of  his  family,  generous  to 
a  fault,  fairly  educated,  and  peculiarly  sen 
sitive  to  any  reflection  upon  his  honor,  ho 

179 


was  probably  a  fair  representative  of  the 
higher  type  of  the  southron. 

The  Lenoirs  and  Brevars  had  been  neigh 
bors  and  friends  for  generations,  differing 
occasionally  on  minor  questions,  but  united 
on  all  that  related  to  the  rights  of  states, 
and  the  institution  of  African  slavery,  and 
ever  ready  to  strike  hands  to  maintain  the 
honor  of  the  commonwealth  to  which  they 
had  been  educated  to  believe  their  highest 
allegiance  belonged. 

Rising  from  his  seat  Lenoir  pushed  the 
door  of  the  cabin  carefully  aside,  as  if  he 
desired  not  to  disturb  the  sleepers,  and  stood 
for  a  moment  on  its  threshold.  The  rain 
had  ceased ;  the  sky  ,however,  was  still 
filled  with  heavy  clouds,  drifting  rapidly 
with  the  wind.  It  was  the  first  gray  of  the 
morning,  when  objects,  as  they  appear,  one 
by  one,  to  the  observer,  seem  like  new  crea 
tions,  or  substances  that  have  suddenly 
stepped  out  of  the  limitless  void  beyond. 

"It  is  still  too  dark  to  undertake  to  ford 
the  branch,"  said  he  to  himself ;  then  re 
placing  the  door,  he  returned  to  the  bench 
before  the  fire,  and  soon  dropped  off  into 

1 80 


cMcLean 

a  half  wakeful  sleep,  from  which  he  did  not 
soon  recover. 

Brevar,  who  had  been  enduring,  rather 
than  enjoying,  a  fitful  slumber,  awoke,  fin 
ally,  to  discover  it  was  broad  daylight. 
Arousing  the  captain,  the  latter  called  hastily 
upon  his  men  to  turn  out.  As  soon  as 
blankets,  haversacks  and  guns  could  be  con 
veniently  arranged,  the  company  abandoned 
the  cabin,  and  sought  the  shed  where  they 
had  left  their  horses  four  hours  before. 
They  found  the  rude  shelter,  but  not  the 
horses.  Amazed  and  chagrined  beyond 
measure  bv  his  misfortune,  Captain  Lenoir 
regarded  the  vacant  space  for  a  moment  in 
silence,  and  then  burst  into  a  torrent  of 
vindictive  and  blasphemous  abuse  of  the  per 
sons  who  had  perpetrated  the  outrage. 

Brevar,  who  was  cooler  than  the  captain, 
possibly  because  he  bore  less  of  the  burden 
of  responsibility,  detected  a  paper  pinned  to 
a  post  or  pillar  of  the  shed.  It  was  an  old 
envelope  which  had  been  used  in  the  trans 
mission  of  a  letter.  Upon  examining  it  he 
found  the  postmark  of  the  town  where  it 
had  been  mailed,  and  the  following  address: 

181 


cMcLean 

CAPT.  LUDWELL  LINDSAY,  U.  S.  A. 
PRISON, 

SALISBURY,  N.  C. 

Handing-  it  to  Lenoir,  that  gentleman 
read  it,  and  then  turning  it  over,  found  on 
the  reverse  side,  in  rude  characters,  evidently 
traced  in  the  dark,  the  following : 

''Captains  Northrup  and  Lindsay,  U.  S. 
A.,  leave  compliments  for  Captain  Lenoir, 
and  regret  their  inability  to  pay  their  re 
spects  to  him  in  person." 

Looking  into  the  faces  of  his  men  with 
a  confused  and  anxious  expression,  they  had 
never  recognized  in  him  before,  Lenoir  said 
quietly : 

"Beaten  and  disgraced  at  last,  by  — 
George !" 


182 


XIII 
THE  HOME  GUARDS 

HS  soon  as  there  was  a  lull  in  the  room 
above  indicative  of  drowsiness  on  the 
part  of  the  inmates,  Lindsay,  who  had 
become  weary  of  lying  in  a  position  so 
cramped  and  uncomfortable,  took  occasion 
to  investigate  the  place  in  which  he  was  con 
cealed,  as  fully  as  it  could  be  done  without 
attracting  attention  from  those  whose  notice 
he  was  at  present  most  anxious  to  avoid. 
Crawling  cautiously  to  the  side  of  the  cellar, 
where  he  thought  he  detected  an  opening 
which  led  to  the  open  air,  and  finding  he 
was  not  mistaken  in  his  conjecture  that  an 
escape  could  be  effected  with  the  utmost 
ease  by  way  of  the  outside  entrance  to, 
or  exit  from  the  pit,  he  touched  Northrup, 
C;esar  and  the  Tennesseean,  and  one  at  a 
time,  and  very  cautiously  and  quietly,  they 
abandoned  their  place  of  concealment,  and 
stood  for  a  moment  in  whispered  consulta 
tion  in  the  rear  of  the  cabin.  The  storm 
had  in  no  degree  abated,  but  the  moon  had 

183 


cMcLean 

been  up  an  hour  or  more,  and  the  intense 
darkness  had  been  softened  by  its  influence 
to  such  an  extent  that  objects  very  near 
were  barely  distinguishable.  Moving  hastily 
to  the  shed,  they  discovered,  by  the  sense  of 
touch,  rather  than  that  of  sight,  that  it  con 
tained  twelve  horses. 

It  required  but  a  few  minutes  time  for 
each  of  the  four  men  to  gather  up  the  reins 
of  three  bridles  and  start  across  the  field. 
As  they  were  leaving,  Lindsay  stopped  and 
placing  his  horses  temporarily  in  the  care 
of  his  companions,  returned  to  the  shed,  as 
if  to  assure  himself  there  was  nothing  more 
to  take,  and  after  a  minute's  absence  re 
joined  them. 

The  Tennesseean  was  perfectly  familar 
with  the  premises  over  which  they  traveled, 
and,  after  proceeding  some  distance  in  the 
open  field,  he  let  down  a  panel  of  worm 
fence  and  led  the  party  to  the  public  high 
way.  Following  this,  they  soon  reached  the 
branch  whose  swollen  waters  had  been 
found  impassable  some  hours  before,  and 
moving  directly  into  the  stream,  with  the 
apparent  intention  of  crossing  to  the  other 
side,  but  really  for  the  purpose  of  eluding 

184 


cMcLean 

pursuit,  they  wheeled  suddenly  to  the  left, 
and  proceeding  against  the  current  for 
twenty  or  thirty  yards,  abandoned  the  creek 
altogether  and  struck  off  over  the  hills. 

The  road  on  which  they  were  now  trav 
eling  was  a  rough  and  rugged  one,  rarely 
trodden  by  other  human  feet  than  those 
of  the  proprietors  of  the  few  moun 
tain  farms  to  which  it  led.  ]t  was,  in 
fact,  a  cow  path  rather  than  a  public  high 
way  ;  but  all  its  tortuous  windings  and 
abrupt  acclivities  were  familiar  to  the  Ten- 
nesseean,  and,  although  progress  was  neces 
sarily  slow  and  difficult,  the  party  jogged 
steadily  on  without  halting  until  sunrise. 

They  had  now  reached  the  summit  of  an 
elevated  ridge,  and  found  a  comparatively 
broad  area  of  level  ground  on  which  the 
forest  trees  had  been  girdled  by  the  axe  and 
thus  deadened.  It  was  enclosed  by  a  rude 
fence,  constructed  of  brush  and  logs,  and 
had  been  used  as  a  pasture  field.  Entering 
this  enclosure,  the  party  dismounted  and 
permitted  the  horses  to  feed  on  the  grass 
which  stood  about  them  in  abundance.  Hav 
ing  spent  an  hour  in  thus  resting  and  re 
freshing  the  poor  beasts,  the  men  remonnt- 

185 


cMcLean 

ing,  descended  the  ridge,  and  soon  came  to 
an  upper  ford  of  the  same  stream  they  had 
abandoned  when  they  left  the  public  road 
for  the  mountain  path  they  were  now  fol 
lowing.  Crossing  the  branch  here,  they 
changed  their  course  sharply  to  one  bearing 
sou'westerly,  and  proceeded  on  a  line  par 
allel  with  the  valley  of  the  French  Broad, 
and  as  nearly  in  the  direction  of  Knoxville 
and  Chattanooga  as  it  was  possible  to  travel 
in  a  mountain  country. 

The  rain  had  ceased;  the  wind  had  sub 
sided  also,  and  as  the  sun,  now  shining 
from  a  clear  sky,  gave  warmth  to  the  wet 
earth,  a  dense  fog  arose,  mantling  hills, 
ridges  and  ravines,  presenting  the  few  ob 
jects  visible  to  the  fugitives  in  an  unsub 
stantial  and  ethereal  way,  suggestive  of  the 
ghostly  realms  of  the  dead,  rather  than  the 
solid  domain  of  the  living.  As  the  day  ad 
vanced,  however,  the  fog  gradually  grew 
lighter,  and  finally  softened  to  a  mist,  and 
then  faded  to  an  almost  imperceptible  va 
por,  which  lingered  and  mingled  lovingly 
with  the  autumn  foliage,  and  hung  about 
the  crests  of  distant  ridges  in  pleasant  con 
trast  with  the  deep  blue  of  the  sky. 

186 


<~McLean 

iiie  iiilie  party  \veie  descending  a  long 
hill  by  a  circuitous  pathway,  when,  as  they 
were  nearing  the  bottom,  the  challenge  to 
halt  was  given  by  an  unseen  sentinel.  The 
Tennesseean,  without  checking  his  horses 
in  the  least,  uttered  a  word  in  reply,  unin 
telligible  to  his  companions,  but  undoubt 
edly  satisfactory  to  the  guard,  for  they 
were  allowed  to  proceed  without  further 
interruption.  Having  now  reached  the  bot~ 
torn  of  the  hill,  they  came  upon  a  narrow 
strip  of  level  land,  with  a  little  stream  run 
ning  along  one  margin  of  it.  Here  was  a 
camp  of  loyal  Tennesseeans,  or  bushwhack 
ers,  as  they  were  called,  many  of  whom 
recognized  the  guide,  and  manifested  great 
surprise  at  the  number  of  horses  in  his 
possession. 

"Hello,  Dakin,"  said  one;  "whar  all  them 
bosses  come  from?  Air  they  sesesh?" 

"Yas,"  replied  the  guide ;  "they  did  be 
long  to  'em,  but  air  ours  now." 

"Yo'  took  'em?" 

"Yas,"  replied  Dakin. 

The  Tennesseeans,  gathering  about  Lind 
say  and  Northrup,  regarded  them  with  cu- 

187 


cMcLean 

rious,  but  kindly  interest,  and  at  last  one 
said: 

''When  did  yo'  git  away,  boys?" 

"Nearly  three  weeks  ago,"  replied 
Lindsay." 

"Whar  from?" 

"Salisbury  —  near  Salisbury." 

At  this  point  a  man  elbowed  his  way 
hastily  through  the  little  crowd,  and,  laying 
his  hand  heavily  on  Lindsay's  shoulder,  said 
in  a  loud,  cheerful  voice: 

"How  are  you,  Captain  Lindsay? — and 
you,  Northrup?  I  am  surprised  and  de 
lighted  to  meet  you  again.  How  are  you 
both?" 

It  was  McLean.  "Come,"  he  continued, 
as  he  led  them  by  the  hand,  "I  know  you 
are  hungry,  and  that  you  have  had  a  tough 
time  of  it  since  you  left  North  Carolina. 
Why,  Caesar!  you  here,  too?" 

"O,  yasser,  yasser;  dis  nigga  sticks  to 
'em,  Massa  McLean ;  dey  can't  git  away 
from  dis  chile,  sah." 

"Fortunately,"  continued  McLean,  "we 
can  give  you  a  good  dinner  of  venison  and 
corn  bread.  Go  with  me.  You  have  both 
been  well?" 

188 


cMcLean 

The  officers  replied  affirmatively  and 
soon  entered  a  little  booth  constructed  of 
the  branches  and  bark  of  trees,  which  af 
forded  a  very  fair  shelter  from  wind  and 
dew,  but  little,  if  any  protection  against  a 
beating  storm  or  continuous  rain. 

"Now,  gentlemen,"  continued  McLean, 
"make  yourselves  as  comfortable  as  pos 
sible.  There  will  be  something  for  you  to 
cat  in  a  few  minutes." 

McLean  had  just  returned  from  the  bat 
tle-field  of  Morristown.  He  had,  some 
days  ago,  hastened  to  the  federal  camp  to 
apprise  Gillem  of  the  danger  which  threat 
ened,  but  had  reached  him  at  too  late  an 
hour  to  enable  that  officer  to  retire  his  com 
mand  in  safety.  The  rebels,  under  Breck- 
enriclge,  had  pushed  boldly  up  and  con 
fronted  the  union  troops  with  a  largely  su 
perior  force,  and  when,  after  nightfull,  Gen 
eral  Gillem  concluded  to  withdraw,  the  en 
emy  had  the  shrewdness  to  accept  the  move 
ment  as  a  confession  of  weakness,  and  so 
followed  him  with  such  confidence  and  vig 
or  that  in  the  battle  which  ensued  he  lost 
his  artillery,  many  of  his  men,  and  was 
driven  pellmell  back  to  his  fortifications. 

189 


cMcLean 

"It  was,  after  all,"  said  McLean,  "not 
much  of  a  battle,  and  the  loss  sustained  by 
our  side,  not  by  any  means  serious,  for  Gil- 
lem's  command,  all  told,  did  not  exceed  fif 
teen  hundred  men.  But  Breckenridge  is 
making  the  most  of  his  victory.  He  is 
fully  aware  of  the  importance,  at  this  time, 
of  reviving  the  drooping  spirits  of  the  con 
federates,  for  in  this  way  only  can  he  pre 
vent  desertions  from  the  ranks  of  his  own 
army  and  check  the  growing  union  senti 
ment  in  east  Tennessee.  He  has,  therefore, 
issued  a  Napoleonic  proclamation,  in  which 
he  dilates  upon  the  prowess  of  his  army, 
the  importance  of  the  recent  victory  to  the 
confederate  cause,  and  assumes,  with  confi 
dence,  that  this  is  but  the  first  of  a  series 
of  magnificent  successes  which  will  result 
in  the  complete  recovery  of  east  Tennessee 
from  the  hands  of  the  invaders.  With  pre 
tense  of  magnanimity,  he  also  informs  the 
loyal  Tennesseeans,  whether  in  or  out  of  the 
federal  army,  that  if  they  will  now  return 
to  their  homes,  he  will  afford  to  their  per 
sons  and  property  the  fullest  protection. 

"The  effect  of  all  this  has  been,  first,  to 
dispirit  somewhat  the  loyal  Tennesseeans ; 

190 


second,  to  induce  the  disloyal  of  east  Ten 
nessee  and  west  North  Carolina  to  believe 
a  decisive  battle  has  been  fought,  and  an  im 
portant  victory  achieved,  which  must  lead  to 
the  abandonment  of  this  section  by  the  fed 
eral  army.  These  false  impressions  of  the 
magnitude  of  the  affair  have  been  so 
thoroughly  disseminated  that  many  citi 
zens  of  Tennessee  and  North  Carolina 
have  been  attracted  to  the  battle-field, 
partly  out  of  curiosity  to  witness  the  scene 
of  the  struggle,  and  partly  with  a  view  to 
comfort  and  care  for  the  men  supposed  to 
have  been  disabled,  and  partly,  possibly,  to 
give  countenance  and  encouragement  to 
those  at  the  front  who  have  rendered  what 
they  are  pleased  to  regard  as  a  service  of 
the  utmost  importance  to  the  South." 

"Well,  Mr.  McLean,"  said  Lindsay,  "the 
important  thing  for  us  to  know  just  now  is 
how  to  reach  our  lines." 

"A  week  ago,"  replied  McLean,  "I  should 
have  advised  you  to  follow  the  mountains 
southerly,  until  you  reached  a  point  oppo 
site  Knoxville,  and  then  turn  squarely  to 
the  west ;  but  now  I  think  it  would  be  safer 
to  take  a  shorter  route,  and  proceed  from 

IQI 


cMcLean 

this  point  directly  toward  Cumberland  Gap. 
As  the  attention  of  the  rebels  is  centered 
upon  Knoxville,  you  will  cross  the  valleys 
of  the  French  Broad  and  Holston  sixty 
miles  to  the  north  of  them  in  comparative 
safety." 

"Captain  Northrup,"  inquired  Lindsay, 
"when  will  you  be  able  to  resume  the 
journey?" 

"At  once,  if  you  will  permit  me  to  limp 
along  slowly." 

"Would  it  not  be  safe  to  ride  part  of 
the  way?"  asked  Lindsay,  to  whom  North- 
rup's  lameness  suggested  the  captured 
horses. 

"Until  to-morrow  morning,  certainly,"  re 
plied  McLean.  "If  you  conclude  to  start 
this  afternoon,"  he  continued,  "I  shall  ac 
company  you  as  far  as  Nolechucky  River, 
and  can  see  you  safely  over  that  stream. 
There  is  a  Union  settlement  in  its  vicinity, 
from  which  I  have  obtained  many  recruits 
for  the  national  army.  In  fact,  the  homes 
of  many  of  the  men  now  in  this  camp  are 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  ford  ;  that  is  to 
say,  in  the  coves,  patches  of  valley  land 

192 


cMcLean 

and  on  the  hills  within  a  radius  of  five 
miles." 

It  was  perhaps  three  o'clock  in  the  after 
noon  when  Lindsay,  Northrup,  McLean  and 
Caesar  selected  four  horses  from  those  cap 
tured  from  Captain  Lenoir,  and  started 
westward.  They  followed  the  little  stream 
which  rippled  near  the  camp  for  a  short 
distance,  but  as  it  soon  diverged  abruptly 
from  the  course  they  intended  to  pursue, 
they  abandoned  it  altogether,  and  now  en 
tering  upon  a  well-defined  path,  followed 
it  over  ridges  until  nearly  nightfall,  when 
they  struck  the  public  highway,  and,  giving 
rein  to  their  horses,  proceeded  toward  the 
valley  of  the  French  Broad. 

The  sun  had  disappeared.  The  evening 
twilight  had  grown  prematurely  dark  un 
der  the  great  trees  which  lined  the  mar 
gin  of  the  road.  The  horses  were  spirited 
and  eager,  while  the  riders,  glowing  with 
that  exhilaration  which  results  from  pleas 
urable  exercise,  and  prompted  by  a  desire 
to  cover  as  much  ground  as  possible  before 
the  sun  rose  on  the  morrow,  finally  gave 
them  all  needed  encouragement,  and  so  went 
dashing  along  the  highway  as  if  pursuing, 

IQ3 


cMcLean 

or  pursued.  They  had  not  proceeded  many 
miles,  however,  when,  in  turning  a  sharp 
bend  which  the  road  made  in  order  to 
avoid  a  jutting  hill,  they  came  suddenly 
upon  a  considerable  party,  who  like  them 
selves  were  mounted,  and  traveling  west 
ward. 

To  turn  back  now  would  only  serve  to 
excite  suspicion,  and  if  the  party  thus  un 
expectedly  overtaken  was  armed,  and  such 
as  they  deemed  dangerous,  their  sudden 
change  of  course  would  probably  induce 
pursuit,  and  possibly  lead  to  capture.  In 
the  interim  between  discovery  and  the  time 
required  to  bring  their  horses  to  a  more 
moderate  pace,  a  hurried  consultation  was 
held,  and,  in  accordance  with  McLean's  ad 
vice,  they  continued  on  their  way  as  if  they 
entertained  no  desire  either  to  avoid  ob 
servation  or  attract  it. 

"Yo'  ride  fast."  remarked  a  gentleman. 
petulantly,  against  whom  McLean  jostled 
while  making  an  unsuccessful  effort  to  re 
strain  his  impatient  horse. 

"Yes,"  replied  McLean,  sententiously ;  "I 
ride  a  fast  horse." 

194 


chlcLean 

"It  does  not  follow,  1  think,  that  a  man 
must  ride  fast  because  he  rides  a  fast 
ho'se,"  retorted  the  man,  angrily. 

"No,"  replied  McLean,  "but  it  does  fol 
low  that  a  man  may  ride  fast  when  so 
mounted." 

Without  awaiting-  reply.  McLean  followed 
by  his  friends,  threaded  his  way  along  the 
margin  of  the  road  with  as  much  expedition 
as  possible,  in  order  to  get  beyond  the 
company,  and,  in  so  doing,  discovered  that 
the  party  consisted  of  twenty  armed  men, 
three  ladies  and  a  small  retinue  of  servants, 
male  and  female.  The  men  were  evidently 
not  regular  soldiers ;  on  the  contrary,  they 
appeared  more  like  armed  citizens,  who, 
while  pursuing  generally  the  vocation  of 
civilians,  were  prepared  in  an  emergency 
to  perform  military  duty.  There  were 
many  organizations  of  this  character  in  the 
South,  made  up  in  part  of  those  who  were 
physically  unfitted  for  continuous  service 
in  the  field,  and  in  part  of  those  whose  pub 
lic  or  private  engagements  forbade  any 
lengthened  absence  from  their  homes.  This 
McLean  concluded,  was  a  company  of  home 
guards,  going  probably,  to  visit  the  scene 

195 


of  the  recent  Confederate  victory,  or  possi 
bly  having  some  other  and  more  important 
object  in  view. 

As  McLean  struggled  forward  to  the 
head  of  the  column,  and  endeavored  to  pass 
it,  he  attracted  the  attention  of  the  coin- 
commanding  officer,  who  mistaking  him  in 
the  darkness  for  one  of  his  own  followers, 
said  sharply: 

"Do  yo'  wish  to  speak  with  me,  sah?" 

"No,  sir." 

"Keep  yo'r  place  in  the  ranks,  then." 

"I  have  no  place  in  the  ranks,"  replied 
McLean;  "I  am  not  a  member  of  your  com 
pany  ;  I  am  simply  endeavoring  to  get  by 
you." 

"Pa'don  me;  how  fa'  do  yo'  go  on  this 
road,  sah?"  said  the  man,  softly. 

"To  the  Nolechucky;  I  reside  near  that 
river,  sir." 

"Can  yo'  tell  me  how  fa'  we  ahr  from  th' 
Bucksho'n  tavern  ?" 

"A  little  more  than  one  mile,  sir." 

"Thank  yo' ;  we  expected  to  have 
reached  it  befo'  nightfall,  but  th'  road 
ov'r  th'  mountain  was  rough  and  I  think  we 
unde'estimated  th'  distance  somewhat,  sah." 

196 


The  cavalcade  now  emerged  from  the 
shadows  of  the  over-hanging  forest,  and 
entered  upon  an  area  of  level,  cultivated 
lands.  It  was  still  in  the  gray  of  the  even 
ing,  and  the  landscape  lay  spread  out  be 
fore  them  in  the  twilight  like  a  faded,  or 
fading  picture ;  its  features  indistinct,  in 
complete  and  colorless.  The  light,  how 
ever,  was  sufficient  to  enable  the  eye  to 
recognize  familiar  objects  when  near  at 
hand,  and  the  man  with  whom  McLean  had 
been  conversing  no  sooner  caught  a  glimpse 
of  his  countenance  than  he  drew  a  revol 
ver  and  commanded  him  to  surrender ; 
but  McLean  had  been  too  often  in  situ 
ations  of  similar  danger  to  be  taken  wholly 
by  surprise ;  in  fact,  he  had  been  carefully 
on  his  guard  throughout,  and  before  the 
officer  had  fairly  given  utterance  to  his 
last  word  he  dealt  him  a  staggering  blow 
in  the  face,  and,  then  giving  rein  to  his 
horse,  lay  down  upon  its  back  and  gal 
loped  safely  away. 

Lindsay,  who  rode  next  to  McLean,  re 
alized  instantly  the  necessity  for  imme 
diate  and  decisive  action,  and  striking  his 
horse  sharply  on  the  flank  he  bounded  for- 

197 


oMcLean 

ward  with  such  violence  as  to  throw  the 
head  of  the  column  into  temporary  con 
fusion,  and  so  facilitate  his  escape.  Shots 
were  hastily  fired  after  him,  but  in  the 
darkness  and  excitement  of  the  occasion, 
fell  harmless. 

North rup  had  been  as  quick  as  the 
others  to  discover  the  dangers  of  the  situ 
ation,  but  he  was  too  far  behind  his  com 
panions  to  pass  the  enemy  at  a  single 
bound,  as  Lindsay  had  done,  and  the 
guards  having  recovered  somewhat  from 
their  surprise  now  closed  around  him  in 
the  narrow  roadway,  and  made  escape  im 
possible.  He  struggled  gallantly  for  a 
time,  but  after  receiving  a  stunning  blow- 
on  the  head,  and  a  slight  flesh  wound  in 
the  shoulder  from  a  pistol  ball,  he  realized 
that  beset  on  every  hand  as  he  was,  the  con 
flict  was  a  hopeless  one,  and  so  surrendered 
and  was  dragged  from  his  horse,  and  dis 
armed. 

Csesar,  wise  man,  saw  at  once  that  discre 
tion  was  the  better  part  of  valor  and  dis 
mounting,  stood  quietly  by  the  roadside 
until  the  turmoil  ended. 


198 


XIV 
THE  BUCKSHORN  TAVERN 

IT  would  be  no  exaggeration,  certainly, 
to  affirm  that  Northrup's  present  mis 
fortune  was  the  most  poignant  he  had 
ever  experienced.  Having  traveled  so  far 
and  so  safely,  he  had  come  to  regard  his 
escape  as  a  thing  assured.  In  fact,  the 
moment  he  set  foot  on  the  crest  of  the  Alle- 
ghanies,  all  anxiety  as  to  the  successful  ter 
mination  of  his  journey  disappeared,  and  he 
felt  the  thrill  of  exultation  which  flows  from 
a  dearly  won,  yet  decisive  victory.  But  now, 
after  nearly  three  weeks  of  labor,  exposure, 
suffering  and  danger,  when,  as  he  believed 
lie  was  about  to  reach  the  lines  of  the 
national  army,  and  be  permitted  once  more 
to  greet  dear  relatives  and  kind  friends,  he 
was,  by  this  unlucky  mishap,  to  be  remanded 
to  a  dungeon  probably,  and  certainly  to 
months  of  monotonous  and  loathsome  prison 
life.  For  the  first  time,  therefore,  during 
the  period  covered  by  this  narrative,  he  lost 
temporarily,  that  pleasant  and  equable  tem- 

199 


cMcLean 

per  habitual  to  him,  and  exhibited  in  its 
stead  a  spirit  of  fierce,  impatient  anger. 

"Who  ahr  yo',  sah  ?"  demanded  the  com 
mandant,  authoritatively,  when  Northrup 
was  brought  before  him. 

"It  would  have  been  at  least  humane," 
replied  Northrup,  "and  certainly  in  accord 
ance  with  the  rules  of  civilized  life,  to  have 
made  that  inquiry  before  assaulting  me." 

"Why  did  yo'  not  surrender  when  com 
manded  to  do  so?" 

"Why  should  I  have  done  so,  sir,"  re 
turned  Northrup,  defiantly,  "are  not  peace 
able  citizens  permitted  to  travel  the  public 
highways  unmolested  ?" 

"Peaceable  citizens  ahr.  but  public  ene 
mies  ahr  not,"  retorted  the  officer.  "Who 
wah  th'  men  who  escaped?" 

"That  question,  my  dear  sir,  is  worthy 
of  his  Excellency,  Judge  Lynch,  who  first 
hangs  his  victims  and  then  tries  them.  You 
should  have  slain  the  gentlemen  you  refer 
to,  and  then  organized  a  court  to  ascertain 
their  names  and  whether  they  deserved  to 
die." 

"As  to  one  man  of  yo'r  party,  sah,"  re 
turned  the  officer  hotly,  "I  can  bea'  witness 

200 


cNLcLean 

both  as  to  his  name,  and  to  tlv  fact  that  he 
is  a  traitor  and  deserves  death." 

"If  you  know  that,  you  know  far  more 
than  I  —  as  much,  indeed,  with  respect  to 
the  merits  and  demerits  of  men  as  the  Crea 
tor." 

"Gentlemen,"  said  the  officer  angrily,  "put 
this  man  on  his  ho'se,  guard  him  securely, 
and  let  us  move  fo'ward." 

"Captain  Dustin,"  said  a  voice  quivering 
with  excitement,  "who  was  the  man  whom 
you  recognized?" 

"Th!  most  active  and  dangerous  traitor  of 
Xo'th  Ca'lina,  Davy  McLean." 

"Indeed,"  replied  the  lady,  "I  know  Mr. 
McLean,  Captain  Dustin;  he  is  wrong  of 
course  in  siding  against  the  south,  hut  he 
is  honest." 

"I  am  astonished  to  hear  yo'  speak  thus 
favorably  of  one  who  has  fo'  fou'  yea's  been 
so  bitter  and  indefatigable  in  his  effo'ts  to 
encourage  disloyalty  to  his  state,  and  to  dis 
grace  and  ruin  the  south,"  replied  Captain 
Dustin,  warmly. 

"He  is  doing  what  he  believes  to  be  his 
duty,  Captain  Dustin,"  she  replied  ;  "he  is, 

201 


cMcLean 

of  course,  wrong,  but  he  thinks  he's  right, 
sir." 

"Do  yo'  know  who  his  companions  on 
this  journey  ahr?" 

"With  all  kindness  to  you,  Captain  Dustin, 
I  prefer  not  to  answer.  I  may  say  this 
much,  however,  the  gentleman  you  hold  as 
a  prisoner  rendered  me  a  very  great  service 
at  the  hazard  of  his  life." 

"If  yo'  will  assure  me.  Miss  Brevar,  that 
from  yo'r  personal  knowledge  of  the  pris 
oner,  it  is  my  duty  as  an  officer  and  a  true 
man  to  the  south  to  release  him,  he  shall  he 
permitted  to  go  free." 

"I  cannot  speak  as  to  your  duty,  Captain 
Dustin."  And  then  after  a  pause,  she 
added :  "I  find  it  difficult  sometimes  to 
decide  questions  of  duty  for  myself." 

There  was  evidently  a  struggle  going  on 
in  the  mind  of  the  fair  Alice,  between  her 
sense  of  personal  obligation  to  the  prisoner, 
and  the  duty  which  she  owed  to  what  she 
conceived  to  be  her  country.  In  such  a  con 
test,  however,  she  felt  quite  sure  all  minor 
considerations  should  be  made  to  yield  to 
the  general  good.  She  regretted  exceeding- 

202 


cMcLcan 

1}  lliat  Aorthrup  had  been  captured,  but 
still  more  tliat  he  was  an  alien  and  an 
enemy,  and  felt  if  she  were  to  connive  at 
his  release,  she  would  to  some  extent  com 
promise  her  honor  as  a  loyal  citizen  of  the 
south. 

There  are  times,  indeed,  when  gratitude 
for  personal  favors,  when  friendship,  and 
even  life  itself,  are  as  nothing  in  comparison 
with  the  infinitely  higher  interests  involved. 
\Yas  not  this  such  a  time?  When  fathers, 
husbands,  brothers  and  sons  were  abandon 
ing  everything  for  the  great  cause,  was  it 
not  her  duty  to  make  sacrifices  also?  If  the 
prisoner  and  her  brother,  or  her  best  friend, 
perhaps,  were  to  meet  in  battle  they  would 
not  hesitate  to  slay  each  other ;  would  it  not 
be  better  to  render  the  meeting  impossible, 
at  the  cost  even  of  an  apparent  oblivious- 
ness  to  personal  obligation  ? 

It  was  a  distressing  strait  to  be  in,  but 
with  her  convictions  of  duty,  there  was  but 
one  solution  of  the  problem,  and  that  was 
against  the  prisoner.  An  exhibition  of 
gratitude  at  all  serviceable  to  him,  would  be 
an  act  of  disloyalty  to  her  country. 

203 


Northrup  realized  at  once  the  embarrass 
ment  under  which  she  labored,  and  sought 
to  relieve  her. 

''Captain  Dustin,"  said  he,  "I  had  the 
honor  to  render  Miss  Brevar  a  service, 
which  no  gentleman  could  have  hesitated  to 
perform,  and  for  which  she  is  under  no  obli 
gation  to  me  whatever.  I  trust  she  will 
allow  no  considerations  of  a  personal  char 
acter  to  interfere  with  the  discharge  of  what 
she  may  conceive  to  be  a  public  duty." 

Captain  Dustin  making  no  response  to 
this,  Miss  Brevar  said  : 

"I  differ  with  you,  sir,  as  to  the  extent 
of  my  obligation  to  you,  but  agree  with  you 
fully  as  to  my  present  duty." 

They  had  by  this  time  reached  the  Bucks- 
horn  tavern,  a  rough  country  inn,  but  one 
which  for  many  years  had  borne  the  repu 
tation  of  affording  good  dinners  and  clean, 
comfortable  beds.  The  presiding  genius  of 
this  hostelry  was  a  busy,  energetic  woman 
of  forty,  who  not  only  managed  to  receive 
and  entertain  her  guests,  but  to  supervise 
with  a  vigilant  eye  every  department  of  her 
household,  and  give  to  the  rude  surround 
ings  that  air  of  homelike  cheerfulness  and 

204 


cMcLean 

comfort  so  rarely  found  in  places  of  public 
entertainment,  and  yet  when  found,  so  de 
lightful  to  the  travel-worn  and  weary. 

The  edifice  was  constructed  of  unhewn 
logs.  The  main  building  comprised  two 
large  square  apartments  on  the  ground  floor, 
one  of  which  was  used  as  the  reception 
room  or  parlor,  and  in  this  there  was  a  bed 
for  the  accommodation  of  the  more  favored 
guests.  The  other  was  the  dining  room, 
and  between  the  two  were  large  fireplaces 
set  in  rough  wooden  mantels.  The  upper 
floor  was  divided  into  two  apartments,  also, 
in  both  of  which  there  were  as  many  beds 
as  the  space  would  accommodate  without 
rendering  them  inaccessible.  Adjoining  the 
main  building  in  the  rear,  was  one  of  smaller 
dimensions,  the  lower  floor  of  which  served 
the  purpose  of  a  kitchen,  while  the  upper 
room  was  used  as  a  sleeping  apartment  by 
the  family  whenever  the  better  rooms  were 
required  for  the  entertainment  of  guests. 

The  three  ladies  and  their  servants  dis 
mounted  and  were  ushered  into  the  recep 
tion  room  by  the  landlady ;  while  the  gen 
tlemen,  with  the  exception  of  Northrup.  and 
two  of  the  citizen-soldiers  who  had  been  de- 

205 


cMcLean 

tailed  to  guard  him,  accompanied  their 
horses  to  the  stables  in  the  rear.  After  a 
few  minutes  delay,  Northrup  and  his  guards 
followed  the  ladies  and  their  attendants  into 
the  parlor,  if  it  may  be  so  called.  The  bed 
which  occupied  one  corner  of  the  room  had 
been  made  the  receptacle  of  hats,  wraps,  and 
such  other  articles  of  exclusively  outdoor 
apparel,  as  are  usually  worn  by  female  trav 
elers  in  the  autumn  season. 

Miss  Brevars  companions — one  of  whom 
was  the  wife  of  Captain  Dustin,  a  stout 
handsome  woman  of  thirty ;  the  other  a 
sister  of  Captain  Lenoir,  a  petite,  bright- 
eyed  brunette  of  twenty,  were  seated  before 
a  cheerful  fire,  qujetly  discussing  the  inci 
dents  of  the  journey,  and  rejoicing  over  the 
fact  that  the  fatiguing  exercises  of  the  day 
had  ended.  Alice  was  standing  near  them, 
with  hands  clasped  behind  her  and  head 
slightly  bowed  as  if  in  deep  meditation. 
The  glow  on  her  cheek,  the  droop  of  the 
lashes  of  her  brown  eyes,  and  her  apparent 
obliviousness  to  surroundings,  indicated  that 
the  silent  but  exciting  struggle  between  the 
impulses  of  a  generous  heart,  and  the  dic 
tates  of  an  exacting  conscience,  was  still  in 

206 


cMcLean 

progress,  and  that  the  parties  to  the  con 
troversy  spurned  all  thought  of  capitulation, 
and  would  accede  to  no  terms  of  compro 
mise. 

When  finally  aware  of  Northrup's  pres 
ence,  she  awoke  as  from  a  reverie,  advanced 
with  out-stretched  hand  to  meet  him,  and 
said  cheerfully,  but  not  without  a  suggestive 
tremor  in  her  voice: 

"I  fear  you  have  been  loitering  on  the 
way." 

"The  delay  has  been  unavoidable,"  he  re 
plied,  as  he  took  the  proffered  hand  and  held 
it  for  a  moment  in  his  own,  ''but  now  that 
I  have  been  recompensed  for  all  the  discom 
forts  and  detentions  of  the  journey,  I  teel 
assured  it  was  providential." 

She  did  not  seek  to  know  how  he  had 
been  repaid  ;  for  the  little  scene  in  the  cove 
near  Vale  Crucis  two  weeks  or  more  ago, 
gave  to  his  words  a  significance  that  ren 
dered  all  explanation  superfluous. 

In  an  undertone,  inaudible  to  her  compan 
ions,  she  said : 

"I  am  sorry,  but  cannot  aid  you  to  es 
cape.  Do  you  for  any  reason  want  to  con- 

207 


cMcLe&n 

ceal  your  name,  and  the  fact  that  you  are 
a  federal?" 

"No;  no  advantage,  so  far  as  I  can  see 
could  be  gained  by  that." 

"Mrs.  Dustin  and  Miss  Lenoir,"  said 
Miss  Brevar,  "Captain  Northrup,  of  the 
federal  army."  The  ladies  rose  from  their 
seats  and  responded  gracefully  to  the  cap 
tain's  salutation.  "To-morrow,"  she  contin 
ued,  "we  shall  have  the  pleasure  of  intro 
ducing  Captain  Northrup  to  General  Breck- 
inridge." 

"That  would,  indeed,  be  an  honor,"  re 
plied  the  captain,  pleasantly,  "but  if  entirely 
agreeable  to  you,  I  should  prefer  to  seek 
the  acquaintance  of  General  Breckinridge 
and  his  army  friends  under  more  favorable 
circumstances  and  on  something  like  equal 
terms." 

"I  fea',  Captain  Northrup,  yo'  would  fa' 
wo'se  in  such  an  inte'view  than  in  th'  one 
suggested  by  Miss  Brevar,"  returned  Mrs. 
Dustin  laughingly. 

"That  might  be  the  case  Mrs.  Dustin," 
responded  Northrup,  "the  warm  receptions 
accorded  to  us  by  your  friends  are  not 

208 


cMcLean 

always  exempt  from  accidents  to  life  and 
limb." 

"Yo'  have  had  some  experience  of  south 
ern  hospitality.  Captain  Xorthrup?" 

"Considerable,  Mrs.  Dustin.  I  have  been 
an  inmate  of  southern  prisons  for  four 
months,  and  it  looks  very  much  as  if  I 
were  fated  to  occupy  one  for  some  months 
longer." 

"You  ahr  on  th'  wrong  side,  Captain 
Xorthrup,"  remarked  Miss  Lenoir,  with  a 
twinkle  in  her  black  eyes. 

"Yes ;  the  wrong  side  of  the  picket  line. 
Miss  Lenoir/'  returned  the  captain  with  a 
smile. 

"Xo.  no,"  replied  the  young  lady  pleas 
antly,  "yo  'ahr  on  th'  right  side  of  th'  picket 
line,  but  on  th'  wrong  side  in  th'  war." 

"When  did  yo'  escape  from  prison,  Cap 
tain  Xorthrup?"  asked  Mrs.  Dustin,  curious 
to  ascertain  something  of  the  young  man's 
history. 

"T  did  not  escape  from  prison,  directly, 
madam  ;  I  effected  my  escape  while  en  route 
from  Salisbury  to  Richmond,  by  leaping 
from  a  railroad  train." 

"How  long  ago?" 

209 


"Nearly  three  weeks,  madam." 

"And  yo'  have  been  on  th'  way  so  long  ?" 

"Yes,  much  of  the  time  wandering  among 
the  hills  and  ridges  of  this  mountain  region. 
By  the  way,"  he  continued  turning  to  Miss 
Brevar,  "I  encountered  your  brother  again 
last  night." 

"Indeed,"  she  exclaimed  in  a  tone  of  eager 
inquiry  ;  but  at  this  moment  Captain  Dustin 
entered  the  room  followed  by  many  of  his 
men  and  the  conversation  was  interrupted. 

"Captain  Dustin,"  said  Miss  Brevar,  "this 
is  Captain  Northrup,  of  the  federal  army." 

"I  suspected,  Miss  Brevar,  that  he  was  a 
federal.  But,  captain,  I  would  like  to  know, 
sah,  whar  yo'  obtained  th'  ho'se  yo'  wehr 
riding?" 

"We  took  twelve  horses  from  Captain 
Lenoir's  company,  and  that  is  one  of  them." 

"That  is  Mr.  Frank  Brevar's  ho'se  sah." 

"Very  likely,"  replied  Northrup:  "Mr. 
Brevar  was  of  Captain  Lenoir's  party,  and 
we  appropriated  all  the  horses  it  had." 

"In  battle,  sah?" 

"O,  no,  sir;  we  were  not  in  condition, 
either  as  to  numbers  or  equipment,  to  do 
battle.  We  took  the  horses  from  a  shed 

2IQ 


IMcLean 

while  Captain  Lenoir's  party  was  seeking 
temporary  shelter  from  the  storm  in  an  ad 
jacent  cabin.  It  was  a  legitimate  reprisal 
from  the  enemy,  but  not  one  calculated  to 
cover  us  with  glory." 

Supper  being  now  announced,  Captain 
Dustin  escorted  the  Misses  B'revar  and  Le- 
noir  to  the  dining-room,  while  his  good  wife, 
who  had  taken  a  liking  to  Northrup,  kindly 
put  him  in  position  where  he  could  not 
avoid  offering  her  his  arm. 

It  was  a  substantial  dinner  to  which  they 
sat  down,  consisting  of  ham,  turkey  and 
chicken,  accompanied  by  a  liberal  supply  of 
vegetables,  all  served  smoking  hot.  The 
servants  belonging  to  the  ladies  of  the  par 
ty,  with  C?esar,  having  up  to  this  time  ren 
dered  service  in  the  kitchen,  now  took  their 
places  around  the  table  and  waited  upon 
it,  while  the  landlady  stood  at  a  sideboard 
from  which  she  dispensed  rye  coffee,  ob 
served  the  movements  of  her  subordinates, 
and  made  mam*  unnecessary  but  kindly 
suggestions  to  her  guests. 

Northrup's  vis-a-vis  was  the  fair  Alice. 
Her  clear  complexion,  shapely  face,  spark 
ling  eyes,  brilliant  tresses,  easy  and  grace- 

211 


fill  bearing,  made  a  picture  he  thought,  sur 
passing  in  loveliness  even  the  ideal  which 
had  now  been  enshrined  in  his  heart  for — 
a  century  it  seemed  to  him.  She  had  told 
him,  indeed,  with  a  deliberate  coolness 
which  bore  evidence  not  only  to  the  absence 
of  all  passion,  but  to  the  sincerity  of  her 
utterance,  that  there  was  no  hope  for  him. 
But  he  would  not  believe  this ;  in  fact,  he 
felt  that  he  could  not  believe  it  without  sur 
rendering  at  once  all  that  made  the  future 
of  interest  to  him.  He  had  met  her  at  an 
unfortunate  period,  when  the  prejudices  of 
section  were  aroused ;  when  the  distress 
and  bitter  animosities  resulting  from  a  fra 
tricidal  war  were  dominating  thought,  and 
banishing  from  the  heart  all  gentle  senti 
ments  and  generous  impulses.  He  would, 
if  God  spared  his  life,  seek  her  when  time 
had  mellowed  and  hallowed  the  sorrows  of 
the  present  and  a  prosperous  peace  had 
robbed  disappointment  of  its  bitter  pangs. 

Miss  Brevar,  remembering  as  she  did  the 
scene  at  Vale  Crucis,  could  not  fail  to  ob 
serve  now,  that,  in  the  far  away  and  dreamy 
look  which  he  at  times  unconsciously  fixed 
upon  her,  there  was  evidence  that  his 

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cMcLean 

thoughts  had  abandoned  the  present,  and 
were  busily  engaged  in  fashioning  the  mag 
nificent  castle  of  the  future,  where  she  was 
to  reign  as  the  queen  of  love  and  beauty, 
while  he  rendered  homage  as  became  an 
humble  but  devoted  knight.  It  was  a 
pretty  dream,  and  the  dream  of  a  hand 
some,  brave  and  generous  man  ;  still  his  way 
and  hers  lay  far  apart ;  so  far,  indeed,  that 
long  before  they  could  by  possibility  be 
brought  together,  new  faces  would  have 
replaced  hers,  and  newer  and  happier  scenes 
obliterated  all  recollection  of  the  rough  and 
rugged  ones  through  which  he  had  so  re 
cently  passed,  and  with  which  she  was  as 
sociated  in  his  memory.  Still,  she  would 
be  glad  to  be  assured  of  his  success  in  life. 
Indeed,  she  would  hazard  almost  anything 
to  aid  him,  save  the  great  cause,  involving 
as  it  did  the  independence  of  the  South,  to 
the  success  of  which  the  property,  honor 
and  life  of  every  true  Southron  were 
pledged. 

It  will  not  do  to  conclude,  however,  that 
l he  company  assembled  about  the  hospit 
able  table  of  the  Buskshorn  tavern  was 
altogether  a  silent  one.  Mrs.  Dustin, 

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cMcLean 

whose  amiable  partiality  to  Northrup  she 
did  not  attempt  to  conceal,  and  indeed,  there 
was  no  reason  why  the  honest  woman 
should  have  sought  to  do  so,  had,  after  re 
peated  attempts,  finally  succeeded  in  engag 
ing  his  attention.  He  was  a  novelty  to  her ; 
the  first  of  the  Federals  she  had  met,  and 
she  proposed  to  make  the  most  of  him. 
She  was  a  jolly,  kind-hearted  woman,  who 
had  a  taste  for  society  and  politics,  and  a 
touch  of  sentiment  withal. 

"Yo'  do  not  think,  Captain  Northrup," 
she  said,  "that  yo'  will  ever  succeed  in  con 
quering  the  South?" 

"I  trust  the  sober  second  thought  and 
good  sense  of  the  people  of  the  South,  Mrs. 
Dustin,  will  finally  induce  them  to  abandon 
the  struggle." 

"No,  no,  sah ;  we  can't  live  with  th' 
No'th,  sah.  They  do  not  unde'stand  us ; 
they  meddle  with  ou'  great  institutions,  sah  ; 
they  insist  upon  controlling  us,  and  we  shall 
not  submit." 

"Pardon  me,  Mrs.  Dustin,  I  think  you  are 
in  error.  We  have  sought  control  simply 
in  the  way  provided  by  the  constitution,  and 
have  always  submitted  gracefully  when  de- 

214 


leated.  We  demand  nothing  now  of  your 
section,  but  what  we  willingly  concede  to 
it.  We  shall  not  permit  the  Union  to  be 
dismembered.  Once  recognize  the  right  of 
a  State  to  secede  and  we  shall  have  as  many 
petty  nationalities  as  there  are  States,  and 
between  these  there  will  be  perpetual  feuds. 
At  the  Xorth  we  desire  peace  above  all 
things ;  but  we  feel  satisfied  a  permanent 
peace  can  only  be  secured  by  preserving  the 
Union." 

"That  all  sounds  very  well,  sah,  but 
when  people  cannot  live  together  amicably, 
it  is  tlr  part  of  wisdom  to  separate.  Tlr 
territory  is  large  enough  fo'  two  great  na 
tions,  and  there  will  be  two,  sah." 

"It  may  be  possible,  Mrs.  Dustin,  but  I 
think  not.  You  have  as  yet  but  little  idea 
of  the  power  and  resources  of  the  North." 

"But  no  power,  sah,"  returned  Mrs. 
Dustin,  emphatically,  "can  crush  six  mil 
lions  of  people  determined  to  be  free." 

''In  all  kindness  and  in  all  sincerity,  per 
mit  me  to  assure  you  the  North  has  no 
desire  to  crush  you,  and  to  add  that  the 
war  is  nearly  ended  ;  six  months  more  must 
complete  the  work,  and  then  the  Southern 

215 


cMcLean 

army  will  disband,  every  Southern  soldier 
seek  his  home,  and  the  flag  of  your  fathers 
and  mine  be  the  only  one  recognized  as  an 
emblem  of  authority.  When  that  good  time 
arrives,  I  trust  you  and  Captain  Dustin  and 
the  ladies  present  may  turn  your  backs  on 
North  Carolina  for  a  while  and  come  to 
Boston,  for  I  feel  quite  sure  if  you  knew  our 
New  England  people  you  would  like  them 
better  than  you  do.  Promise  me  you  will 
do  this,  if  the  prediction  I  have  made  comes 
true." 

"We  might  safely  pledge  ou'selves  to  go 
to  th'  no'th  pole  when  that  happened,"  re 
sponded  Mrs.  Dustin,  cheerfully;  "oh,  yes, 
we  will  make  th'  promise,  Captain  North- 
rup.  Yo'  will  consent  to  it.  Captain  Dus 
tin  ?"  she  asked,  turning  to  her  husband. 

"Certainly,  if  yo'  wish,  my  dea'.  I  am 
quite  suah  we  might  safely  pledge  ou'selves 
to  go  anywhere  in  such  a  contingency." 

"Very  well ;  remember  the  promise,"  said 
Northrup,  as  they  rose  from  the  table. 

Captain  Dustin  proceeded  to  make  his 
detail  for  guard,  and  the  members  of  his 
company  not  on  duty  retired  separately  or 
jn  detachments,  as  inclination  prompted 

216 


cMcLean 

them,  to  the  rooms  on  the  upper  floor. 
The  landlady  was  busily  engaged  preparing 
for  an  early  breakfast,  while  the  servants 
were  clearing  off  the  table  with  a  view  to 
spreading  mattresses  in  the  dining-room. 
Captain  Dustin's  duties  being  ended  for  the 
day,  he  seated  himself  in  an  easy  chair  and 
silently  considered  some  great  scheme,  prob 
ably  for  the  speedy  extermination  of  the 
Yankees. 

Alice  and  Miss  Lenoir  sat  by  the  hearth 
in  silence.  They  had  been  in  the  saddle 
since  early  morning,  and  perhaps  needed 
rest ;  they  certainly  manifested  no  desire  to 
engage  in  conversation.  The  vitality  of 
Mrs.  Dustin,  however,  was  still  unimpaired. 
Looking  up  at  Northrup,  who,  with  his 
elbow  on  the  mantle,  stood  just  above  her, 
she  said  : 

''Yo'  a'e  quite  su'e,  Captain  Northrup,  it 
would  be  safe  for  us  to  venture  so  fa'  into 
Yankee  land?" 

''Quite." 

"Yo'  would  bear  no  grudge  against  us 
because  we  captured  yo'  and  returned  yo' 
to  a  rebel  prison?" 

217 


cMcLean 

"No,  we  should  forget  all  that  in  the 
pleasure  of  your  society,  Mrs.  Dustin." 

"Yo'  would  heap  coals  of  fire  on  us,  and 
so  magnify  yo'self,  sah,"  returned  Mrs. 
Dustin,  with  a  laugh. 

"Really  that  view  of  the  matter  did  not 
occur  to  me,"  replied  Northrup;  "be  frank 
now,  Mrs.  Dustin,  and  admit  that  your 
conscience  rebukes  you  for  interrupting 
my  journey;  but  for  this  meeting  I  would 
have  been  many  miles  on  my  way  home — 
would  have  eaten  my  Christmas  dinner, 
as  I  trust  you  will,  surrounded  by  a  pleas 
ant  company  of  relatives  and  friends." 

"How  long  since  yo'  w'ar  at  home?*' 

"Three  years;  it  seems  an  age  to  me." 

With  a  sigh,  and  in  a  tone  which  bore 
evidence  to  her  sincerity,  she  said :  "I 
am  afraid,  Captain  Northrup,  yo'  can 
never  fo'give  us  fo'  this  detention." 

"My  capture  is  one  of  the  accidents  conir 
mon  to  war.  I  have  perhaps  reason  to  be 
thankful  you  did  not  slay  me  outright.  In 
fact,  I  am  not  sure  that  I  regret  my  cap 
ture  as  much  as  a  good  soldier  should  do, 
for  it  has  afforded  me  an  opportnity  to — 

"To    do    what,    Captain    Northrup?" 

218 


cMcLean 

"To  make  your  acquaintance,  Mrs. 
Dtistin." 

"I  fea'  that  is  but  small  compensation  to 
yo',"  returned  the  good  woman,  thought 
fully. 

The  guard  now  entering,  notified  Xorth- 
rup  that  he  was  expected  to  occupy  a  mat 
tress  in  the  dining  room.  In  taking  leave 
of  the  ladies,  he  sought  an  opportunity  to 
say  to  Miss  Brevar,  in  an  undertone : 

"Do  not  forget  the  interview  at  Vale 
Crucis.  I  shall  return  to  North  Carolina 
after  the  war." 

"With   Mrs.    Northrup." 

"No,  no;  for  her. 

"Good-night." 

"Good-night." 


XV 

m  THE  INVISIBLE  ARMY 

IN  the  morning  when  Captain  Dus- 
tin's  company  started  on  the  jour 
ney  westward,  the  sun  was  just  rising 
above  the  great  mountain  wall  behind  them. 
The  sky  was  cloudless,  the  air  crisp  and 
bracing.  A  hoar  frost  had  fallen  over 
night,  and  lay  like  a  web  of  jeweled  gossa 
mer  over  forest  and  field.  The  hills  and 
ridges  were  glowing  in  the  level  beams  of 
the  sun,  and  long,  slender  shadows  check 
ered  the  open  grounds.  It  was,  in  fact,  a 
good  morning;  a  morning  when  the  heart 
of  youth  exults  and  is  hopeful ;  when  the 
brain  quickens  with  pleasurable  thought ; 
when  the  muscles  bound  with  eagerness  to 
be  employed,  and  the  imagination  grows 
riotous  and  builds  castles  of  marvelous 
beauty. 

"Good  morning.  Miss  Brevar." 
The  white  plume  nodded,  the  eyes  bright 
ened,    and    the    cheeks    flushed    with    new 
beauty,  if  that  indeed  were  possible,  as  she 

220 


cMcteati 

looked  saucily  at  Captain  Xorthrup  and  re-' 
sponded : 

''Good  morning,  sir." 

"I  hope  yon  are  quite  well?" 

"Thank  you." 

"I.  must  leave  you,  to-day,  I  suppose?" 

"Nobody  can  tell.  Captain  Northrup ; 
you  disappear  and  reappear  so  unexpect 
edly,  and  so  mysteriously.  When  we  do 
not  know  even  that  you  exist,  you  come  out 
of  the  wilderness  and  act  the  part  of  a 
good  angel,  and  then  when  we  think  you 
gone  forever,  you  ride  down  upon  us  in  the 
dusk  of  evening  like  a  —  a  highwayman." 

"Do  you  remember  what  I  said  to  you 
last  night?" 

"Did  you  speak  to  me  last  night?  I 
thought  you  were  talking  all  the  time  to 
Mrs.  Dustin." 

"No;  I  sought  an  opportunity  to  say  a 
word  to  you.'" 

"Well,  then,   1    must  have   forgotten  it." 

"Shall  I  repeat  it?" 

''No,  no;  tell  me  something  good.  How 
do  you  like  brother  Frank's  horse?  That 
horse  was  bred  on  the  Brevar  planta- 

221 


cMcLean 

lion,  and  so  was  the  one  I  am  riding; 
mine  is  the  better  horse.  If  Captain  Dus- 
tin  dared  trust  you  out  of  his  sight,  I 
would  join  you  in  a  horse  race,  and  run 
away  from  you." 

"No,  you  could  not  do  that ;  if  my  horse 
failed  I  should  dismount  and  catcli  you  on 
foot.  I  would  not  permit  you  to  escape  me 
just  now.  I  do  not  care  for  horses,  but — ." 

''You  would  not  do  for  a  mountain  coun 
try  like  west  North  Carolina;  the  roads 
are  too  rough  for  carriages,  and  besides  car 
riages  are  dull.  They  may  do  well  enough 
for  a  city,  but  when  you  get  into  the  coun 
try,  there  is  nothing  like  a  good  horse,  and 
what  I  mean  by  a  good  horse  is  one 
that  will  carry  you  ten  miles  an  hour, 
and  make  you  feel  as  if  you  were  on  wings, 
and  flying  through  the  air.  Did  you  ever 
ride  after  foxes.  Captain  Northrup?  That 
is  grand  sport;  the  yelping  of  the  hounds, 
the  hurrying  of  the  riders,  the  leaping  of 
fences,  logs  and  ditches,  and  finally,  the 
thrill  of  the  last  dash  when  the  hunters 
gather  in  to  be  first  at  the  death.  It  is 
very  exciting,  sir." 

222 


cMcLea.il 

"Xovv  that  the  fox  is  dead,  let  us  not 
talk  about  him  any  more.  I  shall  leave  you 
to-day  and  I  want  to  tell  you  that  — ." 

"That  you  do  not  like  fox  hunting  any 
more  than  you  care  for  horses.  Well,  I  am 
sorry  for  you.  Captain  Northrup.  Captain 
Dustin,"  she  continued  elevating  her  voice, 
"at  what  hour  shall  we  reach  Greenville?" 

"About  twelve  o'clock,  Miss  Brevar." 

They  had  been  riding  leisurely  for  some 
time  and  were  now  descending  a  narrow 
ravine,  which  separated  two  thickly  wooded 
ridges.  The  road  followed  the  course  of 
a  turbulent  stream,  and  in  many  places  the 
side  hill  had  been  cut  away  in  order  to 
afford  the  necessary  width  for  the  passage 
of  a  vehicle.  The  stream  lay  some  twenty 
or  thirty  feet  below  the  roadway,  and  the 
banks  descending  to  it  were  almost  perpen 
dicular.  The  forest  on  the  right  was  within 
a  few  feet  of  the  horsemen,  and  that  on  the 
left,  across  the  ravine,  could  not  have  been 
over  thirty  yards  distant.  While  Captain 
Dustin's  company  was  in  this  situation, 
they  heard  the  sound  of  a  horn  away  to  the 
rear,  and  then  of  another,  as  if  in  response 

223 


cMcLean 

some  distance  to  the  front,  and  again  of 
still  others  on  each  side  of  them. 

Captain  Dustin  halted  his  company  and 
looked  back  inquiringly,  as  if  he  thought 
some  of  his  men  might  be  able  to  give  a  sat 
isfactory  explanation  of  these  signals ;  but 
as  no  one  offered  to  do  so,  he  started  for 
ward  again.  The  party  had  proceeded  not 
more  than  twenty  rods,  however,  when  they 
were  startled  by  a  voice  from  the  dense 
woods  on  the  right,  shouting : 

"Captain  Northrup  T 

"I  hear  you,"  Northrup  called  back,  for 
he  recognized  the  voice  of  Lindsay. 

Then  a  great  yell  was  heard  —  possibly 
from  the  voices  of  fifty  men,  and  possibly 
from  five  hundred,  for  it  was  impossible  to 
tell  when  one  voice  left  off  and  another  be 
gan  —  to  the  right,  front  and  rear  of  Cap 
tain  Dustin's  party. 

The  guards  immediately  put  themselves 
in  readiness  for  battle,  but  up  to  this  time 
they  had  seen  no  one,  although  the  woods 
were  apparently  alive  with  men. 

"Captain  Northrup,"  now  came  the  voice 
of  Lindsay,  "tell  the  ladies  and  servants 
they  will  be  permitted  to  go  unharmed 

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cMcLean 

either  to  the  front  or  rear,  and  to  go  at 
once,  for  we  have  no  time  for  delay." 

If  Captain  Dustin  could  have  seen  his 
enemies,  he  would  doubtless  have  felt  more 
at  ease,  even  if  their  number  had  been  far 
greater  than  it  was.  But  his  men  were 
crowded  in  a  narrow  roadway,  bordered  on 
one  side  by  a  chasm,  on  the  other  by  thick 
woods  and  steep  banks.  He  could  not  tell, 
certainly,  where  a  volley  might  not  come 
from.  It  was  impossible  for  him  to  make 
a  dash  and  so  get  away,  for  in  that  narrow, 
winding  passage  half  of  his  men,  in  the 
confusion  and  panic  of  a  flight,  might  be 
crowded  off  the  road  and  go  tumbling  down 
the  precipice  along  which  it  ran.  Turning 
indecisively  to  the  rear  for  suggestion  or 
advice,  his  eye  fell  on  Alice  Brevar,  and  he 
asked  : 

"What  do  yo'  advise  me  to  do?" 

"I  cannot  advise  you,  Captain  Dustin," 
she  replied.  "Do  you  think  they  have  guns 
and  mean  to  fire  at  us?" 

"Why  don't  the  women  go  to  the  rear?" 
shouted  the  voice  from  the  woods,  impa 
tiently.  "We  shall  give  you  a  volley  in  a 
minute." 

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cMcLean 

Mrs.  Dustin  evidently  realized  all  the 
veritable  and  imaginable  terrors  of  the  situ 
ation,  for  she  now  turned  to  Northrup,  and 
in  a  voice  hardly  intelligible,  said : 

"Fo'  God's  sake,  captain,  get  us  out  of 
this  terrible  difficulty;  these  ahr  yo'r 
friends,  save  us !" 

''Captain  Lindsay!"  shouted  Northrup. 

"Well,"  responded  the  voice  of  the  un 
seen  man. 

"Do  you  desire  simply  to  secure  my  re 
lease?" 

"That  is  one  of  our  purposes." 

"Let  me  beg  that  it  be  the  only  one." 

For  a  few  minutes  there  was  no  response, 
and  it  was  evident  the  unseen  parties  were 
in  consultation.  Finally  the  reply  came : 

"Let  Captain  Dustin  restore  to  you  your 
arms,  then  return  with  his  command  to  the 
Buckshorn  tavern,  and  remain  there  until 
twelve  o'clock;  after  that  time,  he  will  be 
permitted  to  proceed  on  his  way  to  Green 
ville,  unmolested." 

"Captain  Dustin,"  said  Northrup,  "you 
have  heard  the  terms.  I  shall  not  presume 
to  advise  you,  but  I  know  the  man  who 
speaks,  and  I  am  quite  sure  he  has  force 

226 


cNLcLean 

sufficient  to  execute  the  work  he  has  under 
taken.  In  releasing  me  you  will  do  no  great 
harm  certainly." 

The  captain  paused  a  moment,  as  if  in 
doubt,  but  after  looking  into  the  face  of 
his  wife,  and  giving  his  men  an  opportunity 
to  remonstrate  if  they  saw  fit,  he  said  to 
Northrup :  "  Yo'  ahr  free  sah  ;"  and  North- 
rup  called  back  to  Lindsay : 

"Captain  Dustin  agrees  to  your  terms." 

While  the  home  guards  were  moving  to 
the  rear,  Alice  Brevar  lingered  for  a  mo 
ment  until  they  had  quite  disappeared  be 
yond  a  bend  of  the  road ;  then  giving  her 
hand  to  Northrup,  as  if  to  bid  him  farewell, 
she  said : 

"You  thought  me  ungrateful  yesterday, 
when  I  could  have  had  you  released,  but 
did  not?" 

"No,"  he  replied,  "I  knew  you  were  act 
ing  from  a  conviction  of  duty." 

"Well,  I  am  glad  you  are  now  free,  and 
again  thank  you  for  your  kindness  to  me." 

"Tell  me  that  I  may  sometime  return  to 
North  Carolina  with  the  hope  of  meeting 
you  again,  and  receiving  from  you  the  great 
boon  T  asked." 

227 


cMcLean 

"No,  no;  you  will  soon  forget  me.  Good 
bye." 

But  Northrup,  still  retaining  her  hand, 
replied  :  "I  will  never  forget  you  —  never ! 
Would  you  have  me  do  it  ?" 

As  they  looked  into  each  other's  eyes 
the  face  of  the  fair  Alice  paled,  and  then 
flushed,  and  then  without  a  word,  and  per 
haps  unconsciously,  the  golden  tresses 
mingled  for  an  instant  with  the  brown,  and 
in  some  mysterious  way  —  by  a  delicious 
system  of  telegraphy  used  for  ages,  but  still 
new,  and  never  to  be  fully  understood,  the 
glad  intelligence  thrilled  through  North- 
rup's  heart  that  he  had  won  a  marvelous 
victory;  just  how  it  was  done,  he  neither 
knew  nor  cared. 

Lifting  their  heads  they  discovered  Mc 
Lean  and  Lindsay  standing  near,  the  flush 
deepened  on  the  girl's  face,  and  she  stam 
mered  : 

"Are  you  here,  uncle  Davy?" 

"Yes,  you  rebel  torn-boy,"  replied  he, 
with  affected  sternness. 

"Captain  Lindsay,"  said  Northrup.  look 
ing  down  upon  his  comrade,  "I  am  heartily 

228 


cMcLean 

sorry  to  have  occasioned  you  so  much 
trouble." 

"I  don't  believe  it,"  returned  Lindsay, 
"T  have  seen  too  many  unhappy  men  to  be 
deluded  by  the  statement  that  you  are  one." 

"Here,"  shouted  McLean,  lifting  up  his 
hand  in  a  declamatory  way,  as  if  to  chal 
lenge  the  attention  of  the  world,  "Here  is 
a  type  of  the  coming  peace.  The  Bay  state 
and  the  old  Xorth  state  have  struck  hands 
together  — ." 

''Nay,  more  than  that,  McLean,"  inter 
rupted  Lindsay. 

"And  kissed  in  token  of  perpetual  peace 
and  love." 

And  then  the  two  men  took  off  their 
hats,  and  swinging  them  high  in  air, 
cried :  "Hip,  hip,"  and  the  silent  woods,  or 
possibly  the  bushwhackers  concealed  therein, 
took  up  the  yell,  and  grew  jubilant  and 
vociferous  again,  and  the  men  whose  duty 
it  was  to  blow  their  horns  became  in 
fected  with  the  noisy  spirit  that  was  abroad, 
and  winded  them  with  a  vigor  equalled  only 
by  those  who  are  accustomed  to  blowing 
their  own. 

229 


cMcLean 

Amid  this  tempest  of  rejoicing,  the  fair 
Alice,  bending  so  low  that  the  white  plume 
of  her  hat  touched  the  good  steed's  mane, 
said  "Good  bye,"  and  putting  whip  to  her 
horse  quickly  disappeared. 

As  the  three  men,  now  joined  by  a  score 
of  others,  stood  together  for  a  time  in  con 
sultation,  Caesar  came  dashing  down  the 
road  at  break  neck  speed,  with  his  face 
shining  like  varnished  ebony,  and  a  broad 
grin  revealing  ivory  that,  thus  far,  had  sus 
tained  no  damage  from  frequent  contact 
with  roasted  'possum.  Northrup,  hailing 
him  as  he  rode  up,  said : 

"Really,  Csesar,  I  had  forgotten  you.  my 
friend." 

"Dis  nigga  didn't  forgot  yo'  sah,  an' 
some  udder  folks  hasn't  forgot  yo'  nudder. 
Hyar  am  somethin'  fer  yer,  Cap'n  North 
rup,"  and  Caesar  handed  him  a  package 
wrapped  carefully  in  a  handkerchief  of  em 
broidered  linen,  on  which  the  name,  "Alice" 
was  elegantly  stitched.  Unfolding  it  he 
found  a  silken  purse,  containing  coins  of 
gold  and  silver,  and  two  diamond  rings. 

"What  can  this  mean?"  he  exclaimed,  in 
surprise. 

230 


"It  means,"  replied  McLean,  "that  just 
now  you  are  penniless,  and  may  need  what 
she  does  not." 

"I  cannot  take  it." 

"You  cannot  avoid  it." 


2JI 


XVI 


if  the  writer  of  this  truthful 
narrative  were  to  fail  to  tell  how 
Stoneman  came  over  the  hills  from 
Kentucky,  and  reinforcing  the  troops  at 
Knoxville,  swept  up  the  valleys  of  the 
French  Broad  and  the  Holston  like  a  whirl 
wind,  defeating  and  scattering  Brecken- 
riclge's  army  as  if  it  were  but  chaff ;  and 
how  Lindsay  and  Northrup,  falling  in  with 
these  gallant,  loyal  troopers  were  put  safely 
and  rapidly  on  their  way  northward ;  and 
how,  on  Christmas  day,  at  high  noon,  as  the 
Lindsay  family,  on  the  Lindsay  farm  in 
God's  country,  were  seated,  with  a  goodly 
company  of  relatives  and  friends,  to  a  good 
Christmas  dinner,  two  young  men  appeared 
unexpectedly  in  the  doorway,  and  how  old 
Donald  Lindsay  jumped  to  his  feet  and 
shouted,  "Ludwell !"  and  then  grasped 
the  young  man's  hand ;  and  how  the 
mother,  with  tearful  joy,  fell  upon  her 
son's  neck  and  kissed  him,  as  old  Don 
ald  took  Northrup's  hand  and  gave  him 

232 


cNLcLean 

cordial  welcome;  and  how,  as  the  father 
turned  to  his  son  again,  the  mother 
turned  to  Northrup  and  kissed  him  also  — 
and  how  a  great  shout  went  up  from  the 
guests  gathered  around  the  heavily  laden 
board  —  if,  in  short,  the  faithful  chronicler 
omitted  this  he  would  fail  to  discharge  a 
very  pleasant  duty. 

And,  then,  it  should  be  told,  also,  how 
two  young  men  traveled  on  to  Boston,  and 
how,  on  New  Year's  day,  as  the  shadows 
were  gathering  in  one  of  the  quiet  streets 
of  that  great  city,  they  rang  the  bell  at  the 
door  of  a  stately  mansion  built  years  and 
years  ago,  and  how,  when  the  servant  re 
sponded  to  the  call,  she  was  so  surprised, 
that  she  gave  a  little  shriek,  and  how,  fol 
lowing  her  into  the  still  unlighted  hallway, 
the  young  men  turned  aside  into  an  elegant, 
old  fashioned  parlor,  and  how,  pretty  soon, 
a  woman,  whose  hair  was  frosted,  but 
whose  body  was  hale,  came  into  the  room, 
hurriedly,  and  throwing  her  arms  about 
North rup's  neck,  kissed  him  and  wept  for 
joy,  and  returned  grateful  thanks  to  heaven 
for  his  safe  return  :  and  how  a  handsome 
girl,  named  Catharine,  alias  Kitty,  came 


bounding  in  a  minute  later,  and  with  tears 
and  laughter,  welcomed  her  brother  home 
again,  and  then  turned  to  that  great  gawk, 
Lindsay,  and  bowing  low,  put  the  softest 
and  whitest  of  hands  in  his  and  bade  him 
welcome  also.  In  short,  if  the  writer  were 
to  fail  to  suggest  all  this,  he  would  leave 
the  best  part  of  his  story  untold. 

Then,  again  ,it  should  be  put  down  how, 
in  the  fall  of  1865,  when  peace  had  come 
again,  and  that  greatest  of  rural  artists,  the 
famous  Jack  Frost,  had  given  to  the  foliage 
his  most  delightful  touches,  Colonel  Henry 
Northrup,  the  Colonel's  mother,  and  his 
sister  Catharine,  alias  Kitty,  and  their  ser 
vants,  with  a  wagon  load  of  trunks,  drove 
leisurely  from  Salisbury  toward  the  hills. 
And  how  they  halted  by  the  way,  while 
Caesar,  dressed  in  sober  black,  and  like  a 
gentleman  very  much  indeed,  ran  across  the 
field  to  Tom  McKorkle's  cabin,  and  re 
turned  with  Tom,  and  Tom's  wife  and  chil 
dren,  and  how  Northrup  shook  hands  with 
all,  and  how  Northrup's  mother  loaded  them 
with  gifts ;  and  how  the  tears  came  to  Kitty 
Northrup's  eyes  when  Tom  McKorkle's 
Avife  said  solemnly :  "De  Lo'd  bress  yer 

234 


honey,  en  be  wid  yer  always,  an'  all  ob  yo' 
uns."  If,  in  short,  \ve  were  to  fail  to  sug 
gest  all  this,  the  story  would  be  very  in 
complete. 

And  then  it  should  be  told  how  they  jour" 
neyed  onward  leisurely  over  hills  and  val 
leys  until  they  turned  into  the  avenue  lead 
ing  to  the  Brevar  mansion,  and  how  old 
Hugh  Brevar,  who  felt  quite  young  in  fact, 
and  his  good  wife,  who  felt  still  younger, 
met  them  at  the  doorway  and  gave  them 
hospitable  welcome ;  and  how  Miss  Kitty 
and  the  fair  Alice  became  sisters  at  once  in 
thought  and  feeling ;  and  how,  after  a 
time.  Colonel  Northrup  encountered  Alice 
alone,  and  by  accident,  of  course,  as  the 
evening  shadows  were  gathering  in  the 
parlor,  and  thereupon  captured  her  by  a 
dash,  and  held  her  fast.  Well,  just  what  he 
did,  it  would  be  a  breach  of  confidence  to 
tell ;  but  this  much  may  be  said,  he  took 
from  his  pocket  a  silken  purse  and  from  it 
two  old  rings,  and  returned  them  to  her 
with  many  thanks,  and  then  produced  an 
other  having  a  great  diamond  setting  which 
seemed  to  be  a  crystallization  of  morning 
sunbeams,  and  while  putting  this  ring  on 


cMcLean 

the  fair  Alice's  finger,  her  face  was  lifted 
up  to  his  in  a  most  tempting,  tantalizing 
way,  and  his  was  lowered  somewhat,  and 
just  what  then  occurred  the  writer  would 
lose  utterly  the  confidence  of  all  young 
ladies  if  he  were  to  tell. 

We  should  not  forget  to  mention,  also, 
how  that  big-fisted,  awkward,  rural  rooster, 
Colonel  Lindsay,  of  the  Miami  valley,  came 
across  the  country  by  way  of  Chattanooga 
into  Iredell,  and  how  he  presented  himself 
in  unexceptionable  apparel  at  the  Brevar 
home,  and  how  Miss  Alice  received  him 
with  many  demonstrations  of  joy.  and  made 
much  of  him ;  and  how  Catherine,  alias 
Kitty,  was  offish  and  silent  for  a  time,  but 
finally  taking  pity  on  the  poor  man,  made 
up  with  him,  and  said  they  would  be 
friends  ;  and  how  he  insisted  they  should  be 
something  more,  and  how  after  a  while, 
but  a  long  time  after  the  meeting  at  B're- 
var's  the  persistent  fellow  had  his  way,  and 
at  the  same  time  his  wife. 

And  then,  at  last,  it  should  be  recorded 
how,  amid  a  gay  company  of  relatives, 
friends  and  neighbors.  Colonel  Northrup 
and  the  fair  Alice  were,  with  all  due  solem- 

236 


nity,  made  man  and  wife ;  and  how  Davy 
McLean  was  among  the  first  to  congratulate 
Mrs.  Colonel  Northrup  and  wish  her  joy. 
And  how,  after  a  tender  parting  from 
North  Carolina  friends,  the  newly  mar 
ried  couple  traveled  on  to  Boston,  and  then 
took  ship  for  an  extended  tour  abroad.  If, 
in  short,  the  writer  were  to  fail  to  suggest 
all  this,  his  story  would  not  end  as  well  as 
all  true  stories  should. 


237 


A     000138671     3 


